The current rock star of mixed martial arts was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck, came late to talking, was homeless, battled bulimia, fell asleep at the wheel while juggling minimum-wage jobs, put her body through hell, discovered naked photos taken without her knowledge by a boyfriend, bumped heads with her mother and mourned the tragic death of her father.

There was no shortage of material for the book Rousey had always talked of writing.

“When I was really having some of my hardest days, I would tell myself — kind of as a pep talk — that I was just in the difficult part of the book and that I was in the middle of a very interesting autobiography,” said Rousey, who kept journals growing up.

“And I was convinced I was on my way to something and I wasn’t stuck where I was.”

Rousey, who wrote the book with her sister, journalist Maria Burns Ortiz, wanted to deliver more than a memoir and succeeds. It’s an easy read that rises from the entertaining to the inspirational at times.

The book is accompanied by Eric Williams’ candid photos from training camps for bouts with Canadian Alexis Davis and Cat Zingano.

Each chapter is prefaced by a brief statement/confession or lesson learned.

“I have lost tournaments. I have lost friendships. I have lost my father,” she writes in opening the chapter titled “You Will be Tested.

“I know that I can deal when things are bad. I can come back when things are at their worst. I’m not afraid of losing all my money or losing my career, because I know I’m capable of living in my car and rising up. Once you’ve conquered the worst things that can happen, there is no need to fear the unknown. You are fearless.”

You start to believe that after reading how Rousey pushed a dislocated elbow back into place during a 2007 bout with world judo champion Edith Bosch. Or how she felt her jaw dislocate in 2013 before rallying to beat Liz Carmouche in her first UFC title defence.

In person, the five-foot-seven Rousey moves gracefully. A tiny tattoo peaks out of her sleeve. Inked words adorn her foot. A two-time Olympic judoka, Rousey keeps the Olympic rings out of sight unless you have a copy of ESPN’s The Magazine Body Issue lying around.

She has a big, hearty laugh and a crinkly smile that is worlds apart from her go-to-war Octagon face.

Rousey has a soft spot for Canada and it’s not just because she only needed 158 seconds to dispatch Canadians Charmaine Tweet, Julie Budd, Sarah Kaufman and Davis. Rousey fondly recalls living four to five months in Montreal as a cash-strapped amateur athlete.

These days Rousey has a tight circle of friends, family and confidantes. Referencing the film Million Dollar Baby, she says head trainer Edmond Tarverdyan is the Clint Eastwood to her Hilary Swank.

Asked about the Sports Illustrated cover and its headline “Ronda Rousey is the world’s most dominant athlete,” Rousey replies: “I’m so immeasurably proud that the word woman wasn’t in there. And that a lot of people didn’t even notice it was missing.”

Unbeaten in 11 pro fights, 10 of which ended in the first round, Rousey no longer has to worry about paying the bills. But challenges remain.

“When I was struggling, it sucked but it was simple. I knew exactly what I had to do that day to get through the day. It was hard work but it was easy to wrap your mind around.”

The problems were basic, like paying for rent, food, gas, car insurance, feeding the dog, and sorting out training.

“I had six or seven problems. I don’t have enough digits for my problems these days,” she said with a laugh. “They’re a lot smaller problems and I’d rather have those than worry about eviction. But it’s hard to mentally keep track of so many things at once and not let anything fall through the cracks.”

If she does move, it may be to reach for a book or a mouse to play World of Warcraft.

But there are no complaints. “Life is good. I’m having a ball. I really am.”

Rousey says she has one day off between now and Aug. 2, which is the day after her UFC 190 fight against Bethe Correia in Brazil.

So what will she do to relax then? “I think I’m going to faceplant, not move.”

]]>http://o.canada.com/sports/ufc-champ-rousey-adds-author-to-already-glittering-resume/feed0Ronda RouseythecanadianpressJon Jones stripped of UFC light heavyweight title, indefinitely suspendedhttp://o.canada.com/sports/jon-jones-stripped-of-ufc-light-heavyweight-title-indefinitely-suspended
http://o.canada.com/sports/jon-jones-stripped-of-ufc-light-heavyweight-title-indefinitely-suspended#commentsWed, 29 Apr 2015 03:56:52 +0000https://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com?p=605485&preview_id=605485]]>Jon Jones has been stripped of his UFC light heavyweight title and suspended indefinitely following his arrest in New Mexico on a hit-and-run that police say left a pregnant woman with a broken arm.

The UFC announced the extraordinary penalties Tuesday night for violations of its athlete code of conduct policy following Jones’ latest arrest in a string of misbehaviour.

“Got a lot of soul searching to do,” Jones posted on his official Twitter account Tuesday. “Sorry to everyone I’ve let down.”

UFC President Dana White and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta apparently met with Jones in Albuquerque before making their decision, which deprives the promotion of a major star. Jones is widely considered the world’s best pound-for-pound mixed martial artist.

“He’s very disappointed. He’s upset,” White told Fox Sports, the UFC’s official broadcast partner. “He wanted to go down as one of the greats, or the greatest ever. He’s disappointed, but it is what it is. It was the decision we had to make.”

Jones was scheduled to face No. 1 contender Anthony Johnson at UFC 187 in Las Vegas on May 23, headlining one of the promotion’s biggest shows of the year.

Instead, No. 3 contender Daniel Cormier will face Johnson for the title. Cormier lost to Jones in January, several weeks after Jones tested positive for cocaine use.

Cormier was scheduled to fight on a card in New Orleans on June 6, but agreed to take his second straight title shot on 3 1/2 weeks’ notice.

“For us to have to go in and strip him of his title and suspend (Jones), you know, it’s not fun,” White said. “But the show goes on. Anthony Johnson is ready for this fight, and Daniel Cormier was beyond pumped to get this opportunity.”

Jones’ talent and personality have made him one of the sport’s most prominent figures and a staple of the UFC’s major pay-per-view shows. He became the youngest champion in UFC history in March 2011, and he defended the 205-pound belt eight times.

Earlier Tuesday in Albuquerque, the 27-year-old Jones made his first court appearance with his lawyer, but left without speaking to reporters. He faces a felony charge of leaving the scene of an accident involving death or personal injuries.

Jones was released Monday on a $2,500 bond. A judge did not impose travel restrictions on Jones.

According to police, witnesses said that Jones ran from a crash Sunday that hospitalized the pregnant woman but quickly came back to grab “a large handful of cash” from the car. Authorities say the accident occurred in southeastern Albuquerque when the driver of a rented SUV ran a red light.

Officers found a pipe with marijuana in the SUV as well as MMA and rental car documents in Jones’ name, according to the police report.

Although Jones (21-1) reigns atop the sport after his lengthy run of dominant fighting, he has endured legal problems and questionable behaviour during most of his championship reign.

Jones was arrested in 2012 after crashing his Bentley into a telephone pole in Binghamton, New York. He had his driver’s license suspended after being charged with DWI, but did no jail time.

Last August, Jones and Cormier were involved in a brawl in the lobby of the MGM Grand casino while appearing at a promotional event. Jones was fined $50,000 and ordered to do community service by the Nevada Athletic Commission.

In early December, Jones tested positive for metabolites of cocaine while training. Jones was allowed to compete because the test was conducted out of competition, and he beat Cormier at UFC 182.

When the failed drug test became public, Jones publicly apologized for a “mistake,” but spent just one day in a drug rehabilitation centre before checking himself out.

Jones is a native of upstate New York, but lives in New Mexico and works under prominent local trainer Greg Jackson. Jones has two brothers who play in the NFL.

Albuquerque is a hub for MMA fighters who train at Jackson’s gym and use the city’s high altitude to prepare for bouts.

According to police, the accident occurred in southeastern Albuquerque just before noon Sunday when the driver of a rental Silver SUV ran a red light. The driver, whom an off-duty officer identified as Jones, ran from the scene but then returned for the cash before fleeing again, police said.

“Witnesses stated he shoved the cash into his pants and ran north,” the report said

Albuquerque Officer Simon Drobik said authorities are searching for Jones, who’s wanted for questioning, but he has not been located. No charges have been filed.

A woman driving the other vehicle received minor injuries in the crash.

Officers found a pipe with marijuana in the car as well as MMA and rental car documents in Jones’ name, the report said.

Police said they have been unable to reach Jones or his lawyer.

His agent, Malki Kawa, did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press.

Jones (21-1) is scheduled to defend his title against Anthony “Rumble” Johnson at UFC 187 in Las Vegas on May 23, headlining one of the promotion’s biggest shows of the year.

“We are in the process of gathering facts and will reserve further comment until more information is available,” the UFC said in a statement.

Although he is widely considered the world’s best pound-for-pound mixed martial artist, Jones has endured legal problems and questionable behaviour as champion.

Jones was arrested in 2012 after crashing his Bentley into a telephone pole in Binghamton, New York. He had his driver’s licence suspended after being charged with DWI, but did no jail time.

Last August, Jones and challenger Daniel Cormier were involved in a brawl in the lobby of the MGM Grand casino while appearing at a promotional event. Jones was fined $50,000 and ordered to do community service by the Nevada Athletic Commission.

In early December, Jones tested positive for metabolites of cocaine while training for his bout. Jones was allowed to compete because the test was conducted out of competition, and he beat Cormier at UFC 182.

When the failed drug test became public, Jones publicly apologized for a “mistake,” but spent just one day in a drug rehabilitation centre before checking himself out.

Jones has defended his belt eight times since becoming the youngest champion in UFC history in March 2011.

Jones is a native of upstate New York, but lives in New Mexico and works under prominent local trainer Greg Jackson. Jones has two brothers who play in the NFL.

Albuquerque is a hub for MMA fighters who train at Jackson’s gym and use the city’s high altitude to prepare for bouts.

Police spokesman Officer Simon Drobik said Jones is wanted for questioning about the crash, which occurred earlier in the day. No charges have been filed, but a pregnant woman driving another vehicle was hospitalized with minor injuries.

Police said they have been unable to reach Jones and have not heard back from his lawyer.

Jones (21-1) is scheduled to defend his title against Anthony “Rumble” Johnson at UFC 187 in Las Vegas on May 23, headlining one of the promotion’s biggest shows of the year.

“We are in the process of gathering facts and will reserve further comment until more information is available,” the UFC said in a statement.

Although he is widely considered the world’s best pound-for-pound mixed martial artist, Jones has endured legal problems and questionable behaviour during his title reign.

Jones was arrested in 2012 after crashing his Bentley into a telephone pole in Binghamton, New York. He had his driver’s license suspended after being charged with DWI, but did no jail time.

Last August, Jones and challenger Daniel Cormier were involved in a brawl in the lobby of the MGM Grand casino while appearing at a promotional event. Jones was fined $50,000 and ordered to do community service by the Nevada Athletic Commission.

In early December, Jones tested positive for metabolites of cocaine while training for his bout. Jones was allowed to compete because the test was conducted out of competition, and he beat Cormier at UFC 182.

When the failed drug test became public, Jones publicly apologized for a “mistake,” but spent just one day in a drug rehabilitation centre before checking himself out.

Jones has defended his belt eight times since becoming the youngest champion in UFC history in March 2011.

Jones is a native of upstate New York, but lives in New Mexico and works under prominent local trainer Greg Jackson. Jones has two brothers who play in the NFL.

]]>http://o.canada.com/sports/albuquerque-police-seeking-ufc-champion-jon-jones-for-questioning-in-hit-and-run/feed0Jon JonestheassociatedpresscanadaAnderson Silva wants to compete in taekwondo at Rio Gameshttp://o.canada.com/sports/anderson-silva-wants-to-compete-in-taekwondo-at-rio-games
http://o.canada.com/sports/anderson-silva-wants-to-compete-in-taekwondo-at-rio-games#commentsWed, 22 Apr 2015 19:40:40 +0000https://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com?p=604395&preview_id=604395]]>SAO PAULO — Mixed martial arts fighter Anderson Silva says he will fight for a spot in the Brazilian taekwondo team at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

The announcement was made Wednesday after a meeting with Brazilian taekwondo officials.

Considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the history of mixed martial arts, Silva said he is “trying to give back to the sport” in which he began his career.

Taekwondo confederation president Carlos Fernandes said it will be an “honour for our sport to welcome an athlete of this importance,” but made it clear that Silva will have to fight his way into the Olympics and won’t be helped because of his UFC stardom.

Silva is a taekwondo ambassador and a black belt in the sport.

]]>http://o.canada.com/sports/anderson-silva-wants-to-compete-in-taekwondo-at-rio-games/feed0GettyImages-462601738theassociatedpresscanadaBrock Lesnar rules out MMA returnhttp://o.canada.com/sports/brock-lesnar-rules-out-mma-return
http://o.canada.com/sports/brock-lesnar-rules-out-mma-return#commentsWed, 25 Mar 2015 01:53:07 +0000https://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com?p=599565&preview_id=599565]]>LOS ANGELES — Former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar ruled out a return to mixed martial arts on Tuesday, ending three years of speculation about the biggest pay-per-view star in the sport’s history.

Lesnar announced he had re-signed with the WWE in an interview on ESPN’s SportsCenter.

Moments after his announcement, Lesnar told The Associated Press he was in training for a UFC return as recently as last week, even though he had developed conflicted feelings about it over the previous month.

He finally decided to stick with professional wrestling only in the past two days, signing his new three-year deal with the WWE on Monday night when the promotion increased its financial offer.

“The fighter in me wants to continue, but at this stage in my life, it ain’t just about me anymore,” Lesnar told The AP. “You put your pride to the side. You hug your wife and your kids. I’m a 37-year-old man, and some days I feel like I’m 80, just with all the things I’ve experienced, all the things I’ve done. I feel fortunate about it. It’s like, what else can I do? Why go backward?”

More than a year after Lesnar first began working on an MMA comeback, he decided his long-term health was more important than his hunger to return to competitive sports.

The UFC didn’t allow Lesnar to shut the octagon door easily: Lesnar said he turned down an offer worth “10 times” what he was making earlier in his MMA career.

UFC Chairman Lorenzo Fertitta even attempted to increase the temptation when Lesnar phoned Fertitta and UFC President Dana White to tell them his decision while driving into the parking garage at ESPN’s downtown Los Angeles studios.

Although the UFC doesn’t disclose the financial results of its pay-per-view shows, White has said Lesnar is the biggest PPV draw in MMA history.

“Lorenzo said to me, ‘Can we sharpen our pencil? Can we double it”‘ Lesnar said. “I said, ‘It’s not about that. I’m calling you to tell you where my heart is, and it’s not about the money.’

“And then in the back of my mind, I’m thinking, ‘Well, yeah, it is about the money, but I don’t have to beat myself up for it.’ To prepare for another MMA fight, we’re talking 16, 18 weeks of pure hell, and then the cage door shuts and it’s on.”

Lesnar lost his title belt to Cain Velasquez in October 2010, and had major surgery several months later to remove a 12-inch section of his colon damaged by diverticulitis. He hasn’t fought in the UFC since December 2011, when he lost to Alistair Overeem.

Persistent health problems surrounding his diverticulitis forced the six-foot-three Lesnar to take a new perspective on his athletic invulnerability. The hulking NCAA champion wrestler who nearly made the Minnesota Vikings’ roster out of his first NFL training camp despite no real football experience had to re-evaluate his own mortality and ability.

“When you’re sick for two or three years and you don’t know what’s going on, all of a sudden I went from the baddest man on the planet, to vulnerable,” Lesnar said. “It’s reality. My whole life I’ve been this superhuman freak that just kills people, a savage beast. I wasn’t that guy anymore. … Of course my confidence was totally jaded on my last three fights. Whose wouldn’t be? Is Anderson Silva the same guy he was (after breaking his leg)?

“I’ve been a barbarian my whole life. I’m just a smarter barbarian now. Evolution, you know?”

But Lesnar still gathered his fight camp at his home in Minnesota in recent months to prepare for a big-money UFC return. He said his training has been going splendidly, with his coaches “absolutely amazed” by his progress.

Yet doubt kept clawing at Lesnar’s mind. He had a sleepless night a month ago, when he began talking audibly to himself about a return. He booked his own ticket to Los Angeles last month to attend the UFC 184 card highlighted by Ronda Rousey’s latest dramatic victory, hoping the energy and atmosphere of a big-time title fight would rekindle his fire.

“I tried to picture myself coming down to the cage, and it was like a bad dream,” Lesnar said. “It just wasn’t right. It didn’t feel right.”

Lesnar realizes his athletic retirement is cushioned by his busy schedule with the WWE, and he still gets a measure of competitive thrill from pro wrestling’s scripted results. He also will have more time to spend with his wife and three children, and Lesnar seems confident he can thrive without MMA.

“I’m riding the caboose of my sports career,” Lesnar said, waving his hand in the air. “I just barely caught this thing. I’ll see you the next time.”

Rousey (11-0) earned the most impressive victory of her career with jaw-dropping speed, taking out the previously unbeaten Zingano with her signature armlock from an unlikely position.

Rousey landed on her head after Zingano (9-1) charged her at the opening bell, but the champion gracefully flipped Zingano onto her back, got up and manoeuvred swiftly into position to wrench Zingano’s arm grotesquely. Rousey forced the challenger to tap out, ending her fifth title defence.

Rousey’s last three fights have lasted a total of 96 seconds, including two bouts against previously unbeaten opponents.

The sellout Staples Center crowd could scarcely process what it had just witnessed, but Rousey thought it all went to plan.

“We were expecting that she might come out and do something flying at me right away,” Rousey said. “That’s not usually how you land an armbar at that angle, but it works. … It was a lot like judo transitions, where you scramble the second you hit the ground.”

Champion boxer Holly Holm made her much-hyped UFC debut with a split-decision victory over Raquel Pennington in UFC 184’s penultimate bout. Jake Ellenberger also earned a second-round submission of Josh Koscheck as the world’s dominant mixed martial arts promotion ended a two-year absence from Southern California, the home base of Rousey and numerous fighters.

But the sellout crowd got what it wanted from Rousey, the Olympic medal-winning judoka who has become one of the UFC’s most prominent fighters just two years after the promotion added women’s bouts. Zingano was considered the most daunting active threat to Rousey’s reign, but proved to be no match for the champion.

Immediately after the fight, Zingano was as stunned as the fans.

“I want to do it again,” Zingano said. “I just … (The armbar) was in, but it wasn’t in. She did it. She won. She did good.”

For the first time in UFC history, two women’s fights headlined a pay-per-view event. Middleweight champion Chris Weidman originally was slated to fight Vitor Belfort on the Los Angeles card, but when Weidman’s injury forced a postponement, the UFC promoted Rousey and Zingano to the main event without adding a major men’s bout.

Although partly created by necessity, that spotlight is the latest affirmation of Rousey and women’s MMA. Just two years after Rousey’s debut, the UFC has two busy women’s weight classes featuring more than 50 fighters — and Rousey is a movie star, a model and a celebrity who can sell out a large arena in her hometown.

Zingano earned this title shot two years ago with an upset victory over Miesha Tate, but personal upheaval delayed it. After a serious knee injury knocked her out of the matchup and a high-profile coaching spot opposite Rousey on the UFC’s long-running reality television show, Zingano was rocked last year by her estranged husband’s suicide.

The 33-year-old Holm (8-0) ended an 11-year pro boxing career in 2013 to concentrate on MMA. The Albuquerque native and former kickboxer went unbeaten through minor promotions before joining the UFC last year.

Holm did enough to win her UFC debut, but didn’t blow away the scrappy, undersized Pennington (5-6). Both fighters landed big shots during a standup fight, and while Holm finished with a bloody nose, she left Pennington with a swollen left eye.

Holm won the fight 30-27 and 29-28 on two cards, and Pennington won 29-28 on the third.

Holm could be the next contender in line for Rousey’s belt later this year, and Rousey has said Holm’s boxing credentials outweigh her lack of MMA experience. But UFC President Dana White has suggested veteran Jessica Eye will get the next title shot, and Eye demanded her turn in interviews before Saturday’s show.

Southern California fighters Tony Ferguson and Alan Jouban kicked off the pay-per-view card with dynamic first-round stoppage victories. Ferguson has won five straight bouts, while Jouban bounced back from a debatable loss with an impressive striking performance.

Although Los Angeles is the largest U.S. city that allows MMA competition, the UFC hadn’t staged a card in the area since Rousey’s debut with the promotion in Anaheim in February 2013. A mediocre card scheduled for Staples Center last summer was cancelled when champion Jose Aldo was injured.

]]>http://o.canada.com/sports/ronda-rousey-needs-only-14-seconds-to-stop-cat-zingano-defends-title-belt-at-ufc-184/feed0Ronda Rousey, Cat ZinganotheassociatedpresscanadaAnderson Silva says in statement that he is not a cheater, still looking to reveal truthhttp://o.canada.com/sports/anderson-silva-says-in-statement-that-he-is-not-a-cheater-still-looking-to-reveal-truth
http://o.canada.com/sports/anderson-silva-says-in-statement-that-he-is-not-a-cheater-still-looking-to-reveal-truth#commentsFri, 20 Feb 2015 16:05:20 +0000https://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com?p=592997&preview_id=592997]]>SAO PAULO — Brazilian fighter Anderson Silva is speaking out for the first time after his failed doping tests, saying in a statement that he is not a cheater and “never used any substances” to improve his performances.

In the statement published on his Instagram account on Friday, Silva said he has always “played clean” and is still waiting for the “results and analysis from the specialists that are working to reveal the truth.”

He said the rush to condemn him has been “unfair.”

Silva was among the UFC fighters suspended this week after failed drug tests. He is waiting for results from his “B” samples.

Anderson Silva waits for the start of a middleweight fight against Nick Diaz during UFC 183 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Jan. 31, 2015, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Silva won by unanimous decision. (Photo by Steve Marcus/Getty Images) []

The former middleweight champion beat Nick Diaz on Jan. 31 at UFC 183 in his return to the cage after breaking his left leg 13 months ago.

Silva started his statement, which was also available through his official website, by saying that what matters “now is the respect from those who have followed” his career.

“I don’t know what to apologize for, because I am still waiting for the results and analysis from the specialists that are working to reveal the truth,” Silva said. “Everything that I took since my injury are being analyzed. I look for the truth as much as all those who were surprised with the results. I always played clean, I was never a cheater.”

The 39-year-old Brazilian said he would “never risk” jeopardizing a career that he “took so long to build.”

“I think that the hurry some people have to condemn me is unfair,” Silva said. “The time it takes to destroy a reputation is infinitely less than that is taken to build it. I want those who have always supported me to know that I am still fighting for all the sad happenings of this situation to be cleared.”

Silva noted that during his 18-year career he never failed any doping tests.

“In and out of the octagon I never slipped in compliance with the principles that always guided me. With much honour and dignity, I defended my country where ever I fought,” Silva said. “I never used any substances to better my performance in my fights.”

Diaz and Hector Lombard were the other two high-profile fighters temporary suspended by UFC this week, prompting the world’s leading MMA promotion to announce the launch of a multimillion-dollar anti-doping plan in which all fighters will be subject to random performance-enhancing drug testing beginning in July.

UFC president Dana White made the announcement at a Las Vegas news conference on the organization’s plan to beef up drug testing.

MacDonald, a native of Quesnel, B.C., had been due to meet Hector Lombard, ranked sixth among welterweight contenders, at UFC 186 in Montreal in April.

But that fight was dropped after Lombard tested positive for steroids at UFC 182.

MacDonald (18-2) is ranked second among 170-pound contenders. The Montreal-based fighter lost a split decision to Lawler (25-10 with one no contest) when they met at UFC 167 in November 2013.

The MacDonald-Lawler fight will be the co-main event of UFC 189 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. The previously announced main event pits featherweight champion Jose Aldo against rising Irish star (The Notorious) Conor McGregor.

]]>http://o.canada.com/sports/canadian-rory-macdonald-to-fight-for-ufc-welterweight-title-in-july/feed0Rory MacDonaldthecanadianpressUFC adds second title fight to Montreal show, pulls Rory MacDonald from card after opponent fails drug testhttp://o.canada.com/sports/ufc-adds-second-title-fight-to-montreal-show-pulls-rory-macdonald-from-card
http://o.canada.com/sports/ufc-adds-second-title-fight-to-montreal-show-pulls-rory-macdonald-from-card#commentsTue, 10 Feb 2015 15:44:13 +0000https://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com?p=590354&preview_id=590354]]>Canadian star Rory MacDonald is out while a second title fight is in, as Ultimate Fighting Championship plans its return to Montreal.

UFC on Tuesday announced the two major changes to UFC 186, scheduled for April 25 at Bell Centre. A welterweight co-main event between No. 2-ranked welterweight MacDonald (18-2) and No. 5-ranked Hector Lombard (35-4-1, 1 NC) was pulled as a result of Lombard testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs at UFC 182 last month.

In its place, flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson (21-2-1) will defend his title against eighth-ranked challenger Kyoji Horiguchi (15-1) in the co-main event.

“Given the recent change in welterweight fights on other major fight cards, the UFC is pursuing a new fight for Rory at an event to be announced,” a UFC spokesperson said in an email.

Lombard, who defeated Josh Burkman on Jan. 3 at UFC 182, failed a fight-night screening after testing positive for the designer steroid desoxymethyltestosterone. MMAFighting.com first reported the failure.

Whether the changes to UFC 186 lead to a domino effect of MacDonald getting the title shot initially promised by UFC president Dana White remains to be seen.

Following wins last year over Demian Maia, Tyron Woodley and Tarec Saffiedine, White said MacDonald would face the winner of December’s title bout between Robbie Lawler and Johny Hendricks. Instead, when Lawler avenged an earlier defeat at the hands of Hendricks, the company booked a rubber match between Lawler and Hendricks.

After Lawler requested time off until the summer, however, Hendricks was promptly slotted in to face top-10 contender Matt Brown at UFC 185 on March 14 in Dallas. If Hendricks wins and is relatively healthy, he would have a strong argument to retain the first shot at Lawler.

If UFC were to go ahead with a Lawler-MacDonald title bout, a date in Canada is a possibility. The company has announced plans to return to both Calgary and Toronto this year. Assuming each of those events are broadcast on pay-per-view, the likely options are either UFC 190 on Aug. 1; UFC 191 on Sept. 5, (with Toronto out as a possibility, thanks to a week-long stay by Cirque de Soleil); UFC 192 on Oct. 3; UFC 193 on Nov. 14; or UFC 194 on Dec. 5.

Popular veteran Michael Bisping will meet C.B. Dollaway in a middleweight match at UFC 186 in Montreal.

The former UFC middleweight champion tested positive for two steroids in an out-of-competition test last month.

In a statement last week, the UFC said Silva, who has denied cheating, would continue in his role as coach on the reality TV show. But it subsequently changed its mind.

“The Nevada State Athletic Commission, which regulates ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ series’ exhibition fights filmed in Las Vegas, requested that Silva cease participation in the series as a result of his temporary suspension following the recently announced preliminary results of his Jan. 9 pre-fight drug test for UFC 183,” the UFC said in a statement Monday.

“The UFC and Globo, the show’s Brazilian broadcaster, respect the commission’s decision, which will allow Silva to focus his attention on the matter before the commission. Anderson Silva has been an amazing champion and a true ambassador of the sport of mixed martial arts and the UFC will continue to support him as this process unfolds.”

Brazilian Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira will replace Silva as coach with twin brother Antonio Rogerio Nogueira as assistant coach. Former light-heavyweight champion Mauricio (Shogun) Rua will remain as the other coach.

Filming began Feb. 2 in Las Vegas.

The 39-year-old Silva is suspended pending a Nevada commission meeting.

St-Pierre, a longtime advocate for improved testing, spoke out in the wake of former middeweight champion Anderson Silva testing positive for two steroids.

The 33-year-old from Montreal opted not to say much on Silva, saying it was not his style to kick a man when he’s down.

“I feel very sad for Anderson Silva,” he offered.

“I don’t want to talk about one individual, I want to talk about the system,” he added. “The system is a big problem in the sport of mixed martial arts … It’s something that I believe the UFC and fighters should confront and deal with it. Because if you don’t deal with it right now, it’s going to get worse and worse and worse.”

MMA needs to model itself after Olympic sports, he said.

“They have random testing and the testing is done by a competent and an independent organization (the World Anti-Doping Association) that has no interest financially in the promotion of (the sport),” he told The Canadian Press.

MMA drug testing is usually carried out by state or provincial athletic commissions. The Nevada State Athletic Commission, for example, carried out the out-of-competition test on Silva in California last month.

That test was paid by the UFC, given that Silva was preparing for UFC 183.

Commissions traditionally take a percentage of the gate of fight cards they oversee. Nevada, for example, gets six per cent of the total gross receipts from admission fees, plus three per cent of the first million dollars and one per cent of the next $2 million of total gross receipts from broadcasting rights.

St-Pierre says having an organization serving as watchdog over an event that brings it money does not make sense.

“I believe the athletic commission is doing a much better job now that it did in the past because they do random testing,” St-Pierre said. “But they still have a lot of room for improvement.”

Bob Bennett, executive director of the Nevada commission, said essentially the same thing in an interview this week.

Bennett acknowledged the current drug-testing policy is not all-encompassing but “at least it levels the playing field and lets the fighters and the promoters know that we have a pretty intensive performance-enhancing drug policy, even though there’s always room for improvement.”

St-Pierre says the current system did not work with Silva because UFC 183 went ahead as planned with Silva in the main event. Test results were not made public until after the fight.

“The fight should be cancelled because it’s cheating, it’s a biological weapon that you have,” St. Pierre argued. “If I fight someone with a knife and the promoter and the organization know I have a knife. I’m bringing a knife into the fight, they should not let me fight because I’m carrying a weapon.

“A performance-enhancing drug is the same thing, it’s a biological weapon. It’s an advantage that you have over your opponent that you should not be able to compete with. Because you put the health of the competitor in jeopardy.

“We’re not playing golf, we’re not racing, we’re fighting. Every time we fight we put our lives, our well-being in jeopardy.”

In Silva’s case, it appears the test results were not ready in time.

The head of the WADA-accredited Sports Medicine Research & Testing Laboratory in Salt Lake City which analysed the Silva sample told Yahoo Sports that complex tests take time. Daniel Eichner also noted that samples, taken by a WADA-certified collector, are identified only by number as per protocol and that the testing process operates without deadlines.

Silva has denied cheating.

St-Pierre has not fought since a controversial win over Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks in November 2013. He subsequently stepped away from the sport, saying his life had become “completely insane.”

The UFC vacated his 170-pound title, which currently belongs to (Ruthless) Robbie Lawler.

St. Pierre said if he decides to return to action, he will insist on random drug-testing by “an independent and competent organization” with VADA (Voluntary Anti-Doping Association) as one option.

But he said he has made no decision on his future.

St-Pierre, who has kept training, says he has completely recovered from knee surgery last year.

UFC president Dana White seemed to be straddling both sides of the fence Wednesday evening in a brief statement.

“Anderson Silva has been one of the greatest athletes this sport has ever seen,” White said. “He has had a long and distinguished career in mixed martial arts. In his nine years with the UFC, Anderson has never tested positive for a banned substance.

“In light of this, we want to ensure that Anderson gets his due process and we will support him during this time. While this process plays out, Anderson will continue in his role as coach of ‘The Ultimate Fighter Brazil.’ Of course we will continue to monitor the actions of the Nevada State Athletic Commission.”

The 39-year-old Silva, one of mixed martial arts’ icons, tested positive for two steroids in an out-of-competition random test prior to UFC 183 last Saturday. But results of the test were not ready until after the fight.

“We fully support the commission’s out-of-competition drug testing program, which we have financed when requested over the past two years,” White said. “Testing of this nature is important to help keep the sport clean. The director at the laboratory in Salt Lake City has now explained the timing of Anderson’s test results and why the commission and the UFC did not receive the results until Feb. 3, after the fight.

“Once all the results have been made public and the Nevada State Athletic Commission has rendered its decision, we will respect the process and move forward accordingly.”

The 39-year-old Silva, who had been out more than a year with a badly broken leg, earned $600,000 with an additional win bonus of $200,000 according to the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Diaz collected $500,000.

The purse figures do not tell the whole financial story since the UFC does not detail all of its bonus payments. Silva, who likely also earned a cut of the lucrative pay-per-view revenue, will have made far more.

Middleweight Thales Leites was another big winner Saturday in Las Vegas. He picked up $148,000 for his submission victory over Tim (The Barbarian) Boetsch. That includes a $24,000 win bonus and a combined $100,000 for fight of the night and performance of the night.

Boetch made $102,000 including his fight of the night bonus.

Welterweight Thiago Alves collected $134,000, including a $50,000 performance bonus, for his KO of Jordan Mein of Lethbridge, Alta. Mein made $22,000.

Welterweight Tyron (The Chosen One) Woodley earned $139,000 for his co-main event win over Kelvin Gastelum ($21,000). Gastelum’s basic purse was slated to be $30,000 but he forfeited $9,000 to his opponent after failing to make weight. Woodley said in his post-fight interview that he did not want Gastelum’s money.

Silva (34-6) landed most of the big blows against the taunting Diaz, controlling a strange fight in the same MGM Grand Garden octagon where he shattered his lower leg with a kick to middleweight champion Chris Weidman’s knee in December 2013.

After months of rehabilitation, the 39-year-old Silva didn’t yet resemble the dominant champion who held the 185-pound belt for seven years. Yet he never faced much trouble from Diaz (27-10-1), who couldn’t back up his goading with consistent offence.

“Thank you God for giving me one more chance,” Silva said. “This is a very important moment for me. I went through a lot of suffering in the past year. At the beginning, I didn’t think I would be able to come back.”

In a fight that resembled performance art at times, Diaz taunted Silva with increasingly elaborate gestures from the opening minute, daring him to fight. Diaz stretched out flat on the canvas, backed up to the fence and even stood still with his chin exposed, daring Silva to engage.

“I felt like I was ahead most of the time,” Diaz said. “I don’t know how he wins, on damage or what. I probably won every round … but these judges, they don’t like my attitude out here sometimes.”

Silva, himself a world-class clown at times in his career, kept it serious and pounded out a decision. He won 50-45 on two scorecards and 49-46 on the third. The Associated Press scored it 49-46 for Silva, even if he wasn’t quite the Spider that everyone remembers.

Silva had won 10 straight title defences over seven years as the UFC’s most dominant champion until Weidman shockingly stopped him in their first bout in July 2013.

The rematch ended with Silva’s grotesquely broken leg, which required surgery and rehabilitation before he could even walk again. Yet he never publicly wavered in his determination to return to fighting, even though it was against the wishes of his wife and five children.

He returned to MMA training last fall at his gym in Southern California after accepting this fight with Diaz, the former Strikeforce welterweight champion and a fellow fan favourite.

Diaz had been away even longer, sitting out since March 2013 after back-to-back losses. The mercurial Diaz moved up 15 pounds for this fight, ending his semi-retirement for the big-money fight he craved.

Although both fighters are known for entertaining antics in addition to their skills, few would have predicted the wacky first round. Diaz waited 20 seconds to gesture at Silva to hit him. He then stretched out on the canvas, stood stock-still and even backed all the way to the fence in a litany of taunting gestures.

Silva got into the action with a series of big shots late in the first round, while Diaz gradually got more serious. Light heavyweight champion Jon Jones stood up in the crowd when Silva returned to his stool, urging the former champ to breathe deeply.

Diaz kept up the clowning in the second round, even scratching his behind at one point. Silva showed increasing confidence in his kicks, throwing enough to raise cherry-red welts on Diaz’s ribs.

Silva kept up his steady offence and Diaz kept up his taunts in the final three rounds. Diaz opened the fifth by crouching, sticking out his chin and saying, “Come on, one shot,” to Silva, who kept circling.

“He gave me the hug first before he told me that,” Diaz said with a laugh. “But he was really excited, he really was a big fan. And I appreciated he wasn’t weird or nothing. He was just a fan.”

It speaks volumes about Diaz that the former Strikeforce champion attracts such a following despite often refusing to play by the rules and showing a snarling persona rather than a smile.

There are two kinds of Diaz watchers: those who applaud his “I don’t give a damn attitude” and those who tune in hoping he will have the trash talk beaten out of him by his opponent.

For the UFC, that’s two fan bases in one and helps explain why it keeps going back to what amounts to a six-foot walking headache.

UFC president Dana White was reaching for the aspirin again this week when Diaz failed to show up for a public workout session Wednesday ahead of his UFC 183 showdown Saturday with former middleweight champion Anderson Silva.

It’s the first fight for the 39-year-old Silva (33-6) since he suffered a gruesome leg injury in a loss to title-holder Chris Weidman at UFC 168 in December 2013.

Anderson Silva in a file photo. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Diaz (27-9-1) had elected not to get on his scheduled flight, the UFC later explained. The fighter landed in Las Vegas later Wednesday but not before White tweeted a photo of a milk carton with Diaz’s face on the side.

White said this week that a film crew dispatched to Diaz’s home for the “UFC Embedded” video series had been unable to find him.

This is a fighter who was pulled from a UFC 137 title bout with then-welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre after refusing to show up for press conferences. He once brawled with fellow fighter Joe (Diesel) Riggs in the hospital after their UFC 57 showdown.

Diaz has also been suspended twice for positive marijuana tests. Diaz told the Nevada State Athletic Commission after the most recent failed drug test that he had been prescribed a medical marijuana card to help deal with his ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).

When Diaz did fight St-Pierre at UFC 158, he showed off his chatty side by launching into a stream of consciousness monologue of which White later said “(In terms of) craziness, that was a 10 out of 10.”

“He is a fascinating human being, very tough to figure out,” White added. “What most people care about, he does not. He’s a very unique individual.”

Younger brother Nate is equally abrasive. His signature win involved flexing his muscles and displaying two middle fingers while opponent Kurt Pellegrino was locked in a triangle choke.

After losing to GSP, Nick Diaz had reporters and White shaking their heads when the fighter confessed: “I’ve never paid taxes in my life, I’m probably going to go to jail.”

Diaz, a black belt in jiu-jitsu with slick boxing skills, has also admitted he doesn’t much like fighting for a living.

“It’s pretty rough. I don’t recommend anybody to be a fighter,” he said last July. “Fighting is not something I enjoy doing. It’s something I do that I feel I have to do and that’s just the way it is.”

And yet when he is in the cage, he usually belittles his opponents with a torrent of trash-talk.

Diaz, whose workout regimen includes triathlons, has fought at both welterweight (170 pounds) and middleweight (185). He says he walks around at close to 200 pounds and that making 170 has been “pretty rough”‘ in the past.

For all his quirks, the “UFC Primetime” show before his UFC 143 fight with Carlos (The Natural Born Killer) Condit showed Diaz as a loyal, single-minded athlete willing to dispense with the social niceties in search of excellence.

Diaz often said he wants to be known as someone who “who kept it real.” But he does it while travelling a bumpy road.

“Like my life’s a mess,” Diaz said in March 2013. “I’m not afraid to admit it.”

Dillashaw won the 135-pound title off Barao at UFC 173 in May 2014, dominating the Brazilian before stopping him in the fifth round. The loss snapped a 22-fight winning streak and 34-fight unbeaten streak for Barao (35-2 with one no contest) dating back to his pro debut in April 2005.

The two were supposed to meet three months later in a rematch at UFC 177 but Barao was scratched on the eve of the bout after passing out due to his weight cut.

UFC 186 marks the first UFC show in Montreal since March 2013 when then-welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre defeated Nick Diaz at UFC 158.

Montreal and Toronto were both to have hosted shows in 2014 but the UFC moved them to Las Vegas — UFC 178 (originally slated for Toronto) in September and UFC 181 (Montreal) in December.

MacDonald (18-2) had hoped to be fighting newly crowned (Ruthless) Robbie Lawler for the welterweight title but the UFC, which had promised him the next shot at the championship, elected instead to stage a third fight between Lawler and Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks.

With Lawler opting not to fight until the summer, that leaves No. 1 Hendricks and No. 2 MacDonald with time on their hands.

Hendricks, who beat Lawler the first time they met to decide ownership of the title vacated by Montreal’s St-Pierre as champion, is scheduled to face No. 6 Matt (The Immortal) Brown at UFC 195 in March.

Lombard (35-4-1 with one no contest) asked to meet MacDonald after comprehensively beating Josh (The People’s Warrior) Burkman at UFC 181 last month.

The 36-year-old Lombard, a five-foot-11 slab of muscle who competed for Cuba in judo at the 2000 Olympics, has beaten Nate (The Great) Marquardt, Jake Shields and Burkman since dropping down to 170 pounds.

The former Bellator middleweight champion, who trains out of American Top Team in Florida, has black belts in judo and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. MacDonald also has his BJJ black belt.

The Montreal card will also see former light-heavyweight champion Quinton (Rampage) Jackson return to UFC action against Brazil’s Fabio Maldonado (22-7).

Jackson (32-10) won three fights in Bellator since leaving the UFC after a January 2013 loss to Glover Teixeira, his third straight defeat in the Octagon. Maldonado, a 34-year-old former pro boxer ranked 13th among 205-pound contenders, has won four of his last five UFC bouts.

C.B. (The Doberman) Dollaway (16-7) takes on England’s Michael Bisping (26-7) in a battle of middleweights coming off losses.

Dollaway, ranked 10th among 185-pound contenders, suffered a first-round knockout at the hands of Lyoto (The Dragon) Machida in December. No. 9 Bisping was submitted in the second round by Luke Rockhold in November.

“I think it’s really bad for the sport,” Gustafsson said Tuesday. “It’s bad for the organization. … He’s a role model. He (has) to face the consequences of what he’s done.”

Gustafsson (16-2) lost a thrilling unanimous decision to Jones in September 2013, and he is in line for the next shot at the champion if he beats Anthony Johnson (18-4) in Stockholm next weekend.

But Gustafsson and Phil Davis, his training partner and fellow 205-pound contender, were surprised and confused by Jones’ positive test for cocaine metabolites this month. Jones made an immediate trip to drug rehabilitation following his victory over Daniel Cormier on Jan. 3 and the subsequent revelation of the results from a test taken a month before the fight.

While condemning Jones’ apparent use of illegal drugs, Gustafsson also said he didn’t have a problem with the UFC allowing Jones to fight Cormier despite already knowing the test results. Gustafsson claims he wouldn’t be bothered if he lost a bout to a fighter subsequently revealed to be a cocaine user.

“At the end of the day, it’s still a fight, and (Cormier) lost that fight,” Gustafsson said. “Jones did good in that fight, and he should have all the credit for that.”

Gustafsson also said Jones did “nothing spectacular” to beat Cormier.

Davis is a bit mystified Jones hasn’t faced any punishment for his actions — and that the UFC allowed him to fight Cormier despite knowing he had tested positive for cocaine metabolites. The UFC and the Nevada Athletic Commission have said Jones wasn’t subject to punishment because cocaine isn’t on the list of out-of-competition banned substances.

“I feel like it all needs to be explained to me, so I know when it’s OK to do cocaine and get away with it,” Davis said in a broadly sarcastic voice. “So I can do cocaine right now? Cool. Now, when does that period stop? Twelve hours? Why didn’t you tell me this? Halfway through the night before (a fight), I need to stop?”

Jones’ mother, Camille, recently told WBNG-TV in Binghamton, New York, that Jones spent only one night in drug rehab, and he plans to attend the AFC championship game in Massachusetts on Sunday. His older brother, Arthur, is a defensive lineman for the Indianapolis Colts, and his younger brother, Chandler, is a defensive lineman for the New England Patriots.

Gustafsson and Davis have both criticized Jones’ conduct and perceived arrogance in the past, joining a long line of fighters who don’t get along with the mixed martial artist widely considered the sport’s pound-for-pound best.

Davis beat Gustafsson by submission at UFC 112 in April 2010, but the Swedish ex-boxer and the former Penn State wrestler have since formed a tight-knit training camp in San Diego.

Gustafsson and Davis spent Tuesday morning in training at the famed Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, meeting trainer Freddie Roach during their session. They leave for Sweden on Monday, but their body clocks won’t need much adjustment: The UFC show will be held in the middle of the night in Sweden to maximize its U.S. television audience, and the fighters will just stay on the same schedule they’ve been keeping in California.

Gustafsson is determined to stay focused on his dangerous bout with “Rumble” Johnson, who could derail his long-anticipated rematch with Jones. Gustafsson nearly got the rematch last September, but a training injury forced the UFC to promote Cormier into the spot.

“Every single (fan) asks me about Jon Jones,” Gustafsson said. “But I don’t even make an effort to answer questions about him, because that’s not the real threat here. If I don’t beat (Johnson), I’ll never get the chance to beat Jon Jones.”

The UFC issued a statement supporting the 27-year-old Jones on Tuesday, three days after he defeated Daniel Cormier to cement his reputation as the world’s best pound-for-pound mixed martial artist.

“I am proud of Jon Jones for making the decision to enter a drug treatment facility,” UFC President Dana White said. “I’m confident that he’ll emerge from this program like the champion he truly is.”

Jones (21-1) was tested by the Nevada Athletic Commission last month heading into his title defence against Cormier at UFC 182 in Las Vegas. Benzoylecgonine is not banned by World Anti-Doping Agency guidelines for out-of-competition use, so Jones wasn’t penalized or suspended before he defeated Cormier by unanimous decision.

Jones was given the random test Dec. 4, and the Nevada commission still could impose disciplinary measures on the fighter. The UFC also could discipline Jones, but showed no indication of such plans in its initial statement.

“While we are disappointed in the failed test, we applaud him for making this decision to enter a drug treatment facility,” the UFC’s statement read. “Jon is a strong, courageous fighter inside the octagon, and we expect him to fight this issue with the same poise and diligence. We commend him on his decision, and look forward to him emerging from this program a better man as a result.”

Reebok also stood behind Jones, who signed with the company less than a month ago after a long-standing deal with Nike.

“We commend Jon for taking the necessary steps to address this issue, and we will support him in any way we can,” Reebok announced in a statement. “The status of Jon’s relationship with Reebok has not changed.”

Jon Jones kicks Daniel Cormier. (AP Photo/John Locher) []

Through his attorney, Jones issued a statement to Yahoo Sports apologizing to his family, including his fiancee and their four daughters. The upstate New York native, who now lives and trains in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the brother of New England Patriots defensive end Chandler Jones and Indianapolis Colts defensive end Arthur Jones.

The positive drug test is the latest twist in a tumultuous career for Jones, a former junior college wrestler who has risen to the top of his sport.

Jones’ impressive victory over the previously unbeaten Cormier was his eighth consecutive title defence since winning the belt in March 2011, when he became the youngest champion in UFC history at 23. Jones has evolved into one of the most dominant champions in UFC history, with athleticism and creativity that have allowed him to dominate almost every contender.

He also has developed a reputation for quirkiness and arrogance that have turned him into a villain to many MMA fans — and even occasionally to White, who infamously ripped Jones in 2012 after he refused to take on a replacement opponent on short notice, forcing the promotion to cancel UFC 151.

Jones was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated in Binghamton, New York, in 2012 after smashing his Bentley into a pole. He eventually pleaded guilty and avoided jail time.

Jones and Cormier were involved in a brawl in a casino lobby in August while promoting their bout, with Jones rushing Cormier off the stage and into a crowd. The Nevada commission fined both fighters and ordered them into community service.

SASKATOON — Wolfgang Manicke has demolished 26 houses over the course of his career as a martial arts master, a feat he accomplished with his bare hands.

It’s something that has earned Manicke, 58, several world records, and landed him on televisions shows broadcast in Japan and Germany. Now the grandmaster, or kyoshi, at the Kuro Ookami Dojo in Prince Albert, Sask., is looking to take on his next opponent.

Born in Canada and raised in Germany, Manicke was two years old when he started his martial arts training. To prepare to knock down a structure of stucco and drywall, one needs to do a lot of strength training, he said. You can also expect to come out of the ordeal with bruises and splinters.

“For me, a house is like any other opponent,” Manicke said. “The first thing I do is to look for where the weak spot is.”

Newer structures are easier to take down, said the grandmaster, because older houses tend to use thicker wood. “The toughest spot is usually the stairwell,” he said.

Manicke, who teaches a variety of martial arts including karate, kick-boxing and ninjutsu, last took down a house in Prince Albert in 2011, along with a team of 15 other martial artists. The spectacle was filmed for Stan Lee’s Superhumans.

He said he and a crew of martial arts students once destroyed a house in 95 minutes.

He’s also been filmed by the Guinness Book of World Records, where he and his crew held a title in for several years.

“They actually took me out of the book because I did this for Ripley’s as well, and they are in competition with each other,” Manicke said.

Having been approached by a British film crew, Manicke posted in the classifieds of a Prince Albert newspaper that he was looking for another house to destroy. Since then he has received at least three offers from prospective homes located near Prince Albert and in Saskatoon and Nipawin.

“They would like me to take down the house within an hour,” Manicke said.

Once confirmed, the filming of the feat would take place sometime before March. Until then, Manicke said he will continue his training.

TORONTO — Fresh from his UFC 182 win Saturday night over Myles (Fury) Jury in Las Vegas, Donald (Cowboy) Cerrone was driving back to his New Mexico home in his RV when Dana White called.

The UFC president was offering him another fight — stepping in for the injured Eddie Alvarez against former UFC and WEC lightweight champion Benson Henderson in the co-main event of a Jan. 18 televised card in Boston.

Cerrone, who thrives on a busy schedule, said yes — even if White seemed less than happy about seeing his workhorse return to the cage just 15 days after going three rounds.

“I don’t really want you to take this fight but I’ve got an opportunity for you,” Cerrone recalled White saying.

Cerrone (26-6 with one no contest) moved up to No. 3 in the lightweight rankings after his dominating decision over eighth-ranked Jury.

The Boston fight, which will complete a trilogy between Cerrone and Henderson that dates back to 2009, will be the sixth for Cerrone since January 2014 — and seventh since Aug. 28, 2013, when he suffered his last loss via decision against Rafael Dos Anjos.

He has won six straight since, absorbing 197 significant strikes while handing out 261, according to FightMetric. Jury connected on just 15 significant strikes in 15 minutes.

Compare that to UFC 141 when Cerrone was battered by 238 significant strikes in a 2011 loss to Nate Diaz.

Only three of Cerrone’s fights (Dos Anjos, Alvarez and Jury) since August 2013 went the distance with two finishing in the second round (Jim Miller and Evan Dunham) and the other two (Adriano Martins and Edson Barboza) ending in the first round.

Fighters put their bodies through gruelling training camps and weight cuts before each trip to the Octagon. Cerrone said he had no idea what impact fighting again so soon might have on his six-foot-one frame.

“Probably damaging, I’m sure,” he said on a conference call Tuesday. “But so is cocaine and alcohol. So I think this is a little less.”

Fifth-ranked Henderson (21-4) is coming off a first-round TKO at the hands of dos Anjos, currently ranked the No. 1 contender among 155-pounders.

Cerrone usually leaves the scouting of opponents to his coaches. But Henderson (21-4) is a familiar foe.

Their two previous meetings were in the WEC with Henderson winning by five-round decision in October 2009 and first-round submission April 2010.

“Those fights, that was years ago, man. What do I take away from those? I take the losses that I got from them. I wouldn’t take this fight on short notice, one if I wasn’t clearly an (expletive) loon and two if I didn’t think I could beat Ben.”

While he talked up Henderson’s skills, Cerrone said he would have said yes no matter who the opponent was.

“I just need a who,” he said.

And while he acknowledged Henderson is dangerous, Cerrone said: “If I’m going to be the champ, I’ve got to beet everyone anyway.”

During a public workout in Las Vegas last week, Cerrone wore a T-shirt that summed up that attitude. It read “Anyone, Anyplace, Anytime.”

Next up for 155-pound champion Anthony (Showtime) Pettis is dos Anjos, at UFC 185 on March 14 in Dallas.

Cerrone usually pesters White immediately after each outing about who’s next on his fight card. That didn’t happen this time because the UFC boss was under the weather.

But Cerrone said he spoke to co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta, who told him he would be getting a call. It just came sooner than later.

Lombard, ranked sixth among 170-pound contenders, had offered to step in for the injured Tarec (Sponge) Saffiedine against No. 5 Matt (The Immortal) Brown on Feb. 14. But after dominating veteran Josh (The People’s Warrior) Burkman en route to a three-round decision at UFC 182 on Saturday night, the 2000 Olympic judoka set his sights elsewhere.

“I think Rory MacDonald makes more sense for me,” Lombard said at the post-fight news conference. “It’s up to Dana (UFC president Dana White) but I think Rory’s not going to fight (immediately) for the title. So I think that makes sense. But let’s see what he (White) desires.”

“I think (he could fight) any of those guys. He’s the No. 6 guy in the world, he could fight any of those guys. He could fight Tyron Woodley, he could fight Brown, he could fight Rory, any of those guys. We’ll see what happens.”

The 25-year-old MacDonald (18-2) is ranked second among welterweight contenders, one spot ahead of Woodley.

A native of Kelowna, B.C., who fights out of Montreal, MacDonald had been promised a crack at the winner of the UFC 181 welterweight title fight. But the UFC elected instead to stage a third fight between (Ruthless) Robbie Lawler and Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks after Lawler won the title in December.

Canadian Rory MacDonald salutes the crowd after defeating Tarec Saffiedine at UFC Fight Night 4. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan

An April 25 card in Montreal would seem to be the venue for MacDonald’s next fight, which would fit into Lombard’s timetable.

The 36-year-old Lombard, a five-foot-11 slab of muscle, competed for Cuba in judo at the 2000 Olympics. Lombard (35-4-1 with one no contest) has now beaten Jake Shields and Burkman since dropping down to 170 pounds.

The former Bellator middleweight champion, who trains out of American Top Team in Florida, has black belts in judo and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. MacDonald also has his BJJ black belt.

LAS VEGAS — The UFC is likely headed back to Montreal in April but welterweight Rory MacDonald will have to wait a little longer for his title shot.

UFC president Dana White confirmed Thursday that the Montreal-based MacDonald, who had been in the 170-pound title on-deck circle, will have to watch from the sidelines while newly crowned 170-pound champion (Ruthless) Robbie Lawler meets former title-holder Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks for a third time.

“That’s what’s going to happen,” White told reporters. “Robbie and Rory just fought (at UFC 167 in November, 2013 when Lawler won a split decision). We just feel like the trilogy makes sense, to do the third fight between these two (Lawler and Hendricks).”

Hendricks won a unanimous decision at UFC 171 last March to claim the title vacated by Montreal’s Georges St-Pierre. Lawler won a rematch at UFC 181 in December, taking the title from Hendricks by split decision.

Prior to UFC 181, White said MacDonald would fight the winner for the title with the bout taking place in Canada.

Now it appears the 25-year-old MacDonald will have to face another opponent first. Should he win, White said he would “probably” get a crack at the champion.

April in Montreal would likely work for MacDonald, who last fought in October when he stopped veteran Tarec (Sponge) Saffiedine in the third round in Halifax.

Montreal has been waiting a while for its seventh UFC show.

When the UFC announced its 2014 Canadian schedule last January, UFC 181 was slated for Dec. 6 at the Bell Centre. But the Montreal date was later pushed back into 2015.

A Sept. 27 Toronto show, slated to be UFC 178, was shifted to Las Vegas.

The UFC has announced three to five shows in Canada in 2015 but has yet to flesh out the schedule.

Toronto, Montreal and Calgary were identified as target cities for Canada. The UFC didn’t say which other Canadian cities might be considered although Hamilton, London, Moncton, Ottawa, St. John’s, Saskatoon and Windsor have all been touted as venues for possible future televised shows.

A UFC official said Thursday that the Montreal show is a go, likely in April.

St. Pierre, meanwhile, remains on hiatus. White said the fighter, who has been rehabbing a knee injury suffered training during a timeout from the sport, had reached out but only to text him a happy New Year.

That was an improvement from an August photo op when the two fighters went after each other and tumbled off a temporary stage in the lobby of the MGM Grand. One security official injured a rib in the brouhaha which led to fines and community service for both fighters.

There were no insults on a media conference call between the 205-pound mixed martial arts stars, who came to blows at an August news conference in the lobby of the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

“In terms of the heat between us, I don’t think that’s gone anywhere. I just think now you see two guys that are only six days from fighting. Like what’s the point of us yelling and screaming at each other anymore?” Cormier said on the call Monday evening. “That’s done … There’s no point to that any more. What’s it going to do?

Jon Jones flexes in a file photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Mark Blinch

“All the arguing, all the yelling, all the name-calling, it motivated me during my training. What’s the point in it any more? It serves no more purpose.”

Added Jones: “The fight is here. There’s nothing that can be said or anything to change the outcome of this fight. The work is done. The camp is over. And for me to sit here and be unprofessional and try to insult him and come at him and get in this bickering match to sell a few more pay-per-views, I don’t need to, I don’t need it.”

“The fight’s going to sell and the work’s already been done. There’s a time and place for everything and all the beef and all the craziness was appropriate then. It motivated me, I’m sure it motivated him to have great camps. Now the fight is here.”

The Nevada State Athletic Commission fined Jones US$50,000 and Cormier $9,000 for the Aug. 4 brawl that sent bodies flying after the two fighters clashed during a photo op.

Jones (20-1) was ordered to serve four days of community service while Cormier (15-0) was given two days.

The taller champion put his forehead on Cormier’s face, prompting the challenger to shove him back and soon the backdrop and bodies were flying.

The ill feelings continued later that day as the two fighters, from separate rooms at the UFC office, exchanged insults over a satellite feed after an ESPN interview.

“I wish they would let me next door so I could spit in your face,” Cormier, adding an F-bomb, said after the two traded insults.

“You know I would absolutely kill you if you ever did something like that,” replied Jones.

“You could never kill me,” Cormier responded.

“I bet you I could,” said Jones.

“Then you should try, Jon,” Cormier countered.

UFC heavyweight contender and former Oklahoma State and Olympic wrestling standout Daniel Cormier in a file photo.

The UFC detailed all the darts and arrows in a special advance TV show on UFC 182 called “Bad Blood.”

The two fighters have had to wait to face off in the cage. They were originally slated to meet at UFC 178 in September but the bout was pushed back to January after Jones suffered a leg injury during training.

Cormier, 35, says their beef dates years back to when Jones disrespected him in their first meeting. Jones, 27, disputes the recollection but at this stage, it hardly matters.

The two don’t like each other and that sells in the high testosterone, occasionally cartoon-like world of the UFC.

They have gone at it since the fight was originally announced in July, with Cormier replacing injured No. 1 contender Alexander (The Mauler) Gustafsson after the Swede was sidelined by a knee injury. Jones had defeated Gustafsson in an epic five-rounder at UFC 163 in Toronto in September 2013.

In the wake of their fight announcement, Jones sent Cormier a “I hope you’re ready to come to daddy” message on social media. Cormier replied via Twitter: “I am. I’m going to (mess) you up” with an F-bomb thrown in for good measure.

American Jon Jones (right) lands a kick on Sweden’s Alexander Gustafsson in a file photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

Cormier also was quick to talk up his “Break Bones” T-shirts.

Tweeted Jones: “This is the fight I wanted in the first place. Nothing like fresh meat #Champion2014″

Jones’ young daughter even got into the act, via an Instagram video.

“DC. My dad’s going to beat you up. Guaranteed,” said the six-year-old.

For Jones, Saturday marks the eighth defence of the light-heavyweight title he won from Mauricio (Shogun) Rua at UFC 128 in March 2011 to become the UFC’s youngest champion at 23. Jones, an immense physical puzzle at six foot four with an 84-inch reach, has since defeated Quinton (Rampage) Jackson, Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans, Vitor Belfort, Chael Sonnen, Gustafsson and Glover Teixeira.

Cormier, ranked second among UFC light-heavyweight contenders, is a former Olympic wrestler who finished fourth at the 2004 Games in Athens.

The five-foot-11 Cormier, a former heavyweight, has won four straight since joining the UFC from Strikeforce where he was heavyweight Grand Prix champion. He has out-struck every UFC or Strikeforce opponent he has faced but this time will have to wade through Jones’ 12-inch reach advantage to get at the champion.

Jones is currently ranked No. 1 in the UFC’s pound-for-pound pantheon. Cormier is No. 14. Every fighter between is a current or former champion.

So will the fighters bury the hatchet Saturday in Sin City?

“You know you gain a level of respect by sharing the Octagon with someone,” said Cormier. “I don’t know what’s going to happen after the fight. It doesn’t really matter to me one way or the other.”

Said Jones: “Every guy I’ve beat, I’ve had a pretty solid relationship with. I’m cordial and they’re cordial. I just kind of go on about my merry life.”

The contest served as the headlining bout of Saturday’s “UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Dollaway” event.

It was Dollaway (15-6) who came out looking to push the pace, as he pawed a jab and looked to put Machida on the defensive. But “The Dragon,” a karate master, twitched his hips with fakes as he measured his opponent. When he saw an opening, Machida (22-5) struck with a kick to the body that saw Dollaway double over in pain.

Machida seized the moment, rushing forward with punches before Dollaway could recover, and the fight was waved off at the 1:02 mark of the first round.

“I’m very happy with this opportunity,” Machida said. “C.B. is a very tough fighter. I saw that he felt it and I went in for the finish.”

Lyoto Machida, from Brazil, celebrates after defeating CB Dollaway, from the United States, during their middleweight UFC mixed martial arts bout in Barueri, on the outskirts of Sao Paulo, Brazil. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

In the night’s co-feature, Sudbury, Ont., native Mitch Gagnon (12-3) fell short in his bid to score an upset win over former UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barao (33-2).

While Gagnon was a heavy underdog coming into the contest, he proved himself as a worthy adversary, standing toe-to-toe in several exchanges and landing a few heavy punches. But the former champ proved impossible to take to the floor, leaving submission-specialist Gagnon unable to fight in his preferred position. As such, he began to tire, and Barao’s offence remained strong.

After banking the first two rounds, Barao earned a finish in the third, scoring a takedown of his own and working into position for an arm-triangle choke that forced Gagnon to tap out at the 3:53 mark of the final round.

“I thought I did some good things and bad things — and I got caught,” Gagnon said.

Lyoto Machida, top, from Brazil, fights CB Dollaway, from the United States, during their UFC middleweight mixed martial arts bout in Barueri, on the outskirts of Sao Paulo, Brazil. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

Carlos Junior’s vaunted jiu-jitsu skills were on full display, as he tried to attack his opponent’s leg with a series of first-round submission attempts. But Cummins defended each move with ease and returned fire by scoring punches from top position.

Cummins was more dominant as the fight wore on. While Carlos Junior tried to launch a few heavy blows on the feet, Cummins slipped underneath the attacks each time and brought his opponent to the floor, where he grinded out a unanimous decision, 30-27 on all three judges’ cards.

“He did everything we expected, and for the most part we were ready for it,” Cummins said. “It was just a matter of following the gameplan. He is a great jiu-jitsu fighter, so I needed to make sure I had the control over his hands and posture.”

Lyoto Machida, right, from Brazil, fights CB Dollaway, from the United States, during their UFB middleweight mixed martial arts bout in Barueri, on the outskirt of Sao Paulo, Brazil. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

The fight was largely a standup affair, as the two traded punches and kicks on the feet. But as time wore on, Magomedov’s speed and accuracy began to pay dividends. His counter attacks were powerful and drew blood over Silverio’s right eye. And just as it looked as through Magomedov would cruise to a decision win, he dropped Silverio with a crushing left hand and continued to punch away on the floor until the bout was waved off with just three seconds left.

It was the latest stoppage in a three-round fight in UFC history.

“Elias is a strong opponent and a great fighter,” Magomedov said. “It wasn’t easy to fight him, but everything happened the way it was supposed to happen.”

After some early exchanges on the feet, Silva took the fight to the floor and quickly worked in an arm-triangle choke, squeezing the hold until Rhodes went to sleep and referee Mario Yamasaki stopped the fight. The whole process took 75 seconds.

“It was exactly the way I expected it to be,” Silva said. “Me and my team trained exactly this, the fight went the way we planned 100 per cent. I didn’t even have the time to make mistakes.”

After the two traded bombs for the entirety of the opening round, dos Santos Jr. threw a left hook in the second and immediately called for time after apparently dislocation his finger on contact. However, as the blow came through legal action, dos Santos Jr. did not have the right to ask for a reprieve, and referee Eduardo Herdy called off the fight, awarding Sarafian a TKO win, 61 seconds into the round.

“I didn’t know I was stopping the fight,” dos Santos Jr. said. “I felt my finger popping out, put it back and tried to get back in the fight. Then the referee told me I asked the fight to stop and that the fight was over.”

]]>http://o.canada.com/news/lyoto-machida-finishes-c-b-dollaway-in-just-62-seconds-at-ufc-fight-night/feed1Lyoto MachidathecanadianpressLyoto Machida, from Brazil, celebrates after defeating CB Dollaway, from the United States, during their middleweight UFC mixed martial arts bout in Barueri, on the outskirts of Sao Paulo, Brazil. (AP Photo/Andre Penner) Lyoto Machida, top, from Brazil, fights CB Dollaway, from the United States, during their UFC middleweight mixed martial arts bout in Barueri, on the outskirts of Sao Paulo, Brazil. (AP Photo/Andre Penner) Lyoto Machida, right, from Brazil, fights CB Dollaway, from the United States, during their UFB middleweight mixed martial arts bout in Barueri, on the outskirt of Sao Paulo, Brazil. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)Machida needs just 62 seconds to finish Dollaway at UFC Fight Nighthttp://o.canada.com/sports/machida-needs-just-62-seconds-to-finish-dollaway-at-ufc-fight-night
http://o.canada.com/sports/machida-needs-just-62-seconds-to-finish-dollaway-at-ufc-fight-night#commentsSun, 21 Dec 2014 06:42:29 +0000http://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com?p=566345&preview_id=566345]]>BARUERI, Brazil — Former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida proved he is still one of the world’s best mixed martial artists, needing just 62 seconds to dispose of C.B. Dollaway.

The contest served as the headlining bout of Saturday’s “UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Dollaway” event.

It was Dollaway (15-6) who came out looking to push the pace, as he pawed a jab and looked to put Machida on the defensive. But “The Dragon,” a karate master twitched his hips with fakes as he measured his opponent. When he saw an opening, Machida (22-5) struck with a kick to the body that saw Dollaway double over in pain.

Machida seized the moment, rushing forward with punches before Dollaway could recover, and the fight was waved off at the 1:02 mark of the first round.

“I’m very happy with this opportunity,” Machida said after the fight. “C.B. is a very tough fighter. I saw that he felt it and I went in for the finish.”

In the night’s co-feature, Sudbury, Ont. native Mitch Gagnon (12-3) fell short in his bid to score an upset win over former UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barao (33-2).

While Gagnon was a heavy underdog coming into the contest, he proved himself as a worthy adversary, standing toe-to-toe in several exchanges and landing a few heavy punches. But the former champ proved impossible to take to the floor, leaving submission-specialist Gagnon unable to fight in his preferred position. As such, he began to tire, and Barao’s offence remained strong.

After banking the first two rounds, Barao earned a finish in the third, scoring a takedown of his own and working into position for an arm-triangle choke that forced Gagnon to tap out at the 3:53 mark of the final round.

“I thought I did some good things and bad things — and I got caught,” Gagnon said after the loss.

Carlos Junior’s vaunted jiu-jitsu skills were on full display, as he tried to attack his opponent’s leg with a series of first-round submission attempts. But Cummins defended each move with ease and returned fire by scoring punches from top position.

Cummins was more dominant as the fight wore on. While Carlos Junior tried to launch a few heavy blows on the feet, Cummins slipped underneath the attacks each time and brought his opponent to the floor, where he grinded out a unanimous decision, 30-27 on all three judges’ cards.

“He did everything we expected, and for the most part we were ready for it,” Cummins said. “It was just a matter of following the gameplan. He is a great jiu-jitsu fighter, so I needed to make sure I had the control over his hands and posture.”

The fight was largely a standup affair, as the two traded punches and kicks on the feet. But as time wore on, Magomedov’s speed and accuracy began to pay dividends. His counter attacks were powerful and drew blood over Silverio’s right eye. And just as it looked as through Magomedov would cruise to a decision win, he dropped Silverio with a crushing left hand and continue to punch away on the floor until the bout was waved off with just three seconds left.

It was the latest stoppage in a three-round fight in UFC history.

“Elias is a strong opponent and a great fighter. It wasn’t easy to fight him, but everything happened the way it was supposed to happen.”

After some early exchanges on the feet, Silva took the fight to the floor and quickly worked in an arm-triangle choke, squeezing the hold until Rhodes went to sleep and referee Mario Yamasaki stopped the fight. The whole process took 75 seconds.

“It was exactly the way I expected it to be,” Silva said after the win. “Me and my team trained exactly this, the fight went the way we planned 100 per cent. I didn’t even have the time to make mistakes.

After the traded bombs for the entirety of the opening round, dos Santos Jr. threw a left hook in the second and immediately called for time after apparently dislocation his finger on contact. However, as the blow came through legal action, dos Santos Jr. did not have the right to ask for a reprieve, and referee Eduardo Herdy called off the fight, awarding Sarafian a TKO win, 61 seconds into the round.

“I didn’t know I was stopping the fight,” dos Santos Jr. admitted after the fight. “I felt my finger popping out, put it back and tried to get back in the fight. Then the referee told me I asked the fight to stop and that the fight was over.”

“UFC has taken over the entire industry and dictated its terms upon the fighters … they don’t have any rights. It’s the new religion, as it were … it’s time for things to change,” said Nathan Quarry, who is a plaintiff in the suit along with Cung Le and Jon Fitch.

Only Le currently has a UFC contract, although he said at a news conference that he would not fight if called up for a bout.

Cung Le is one of the fighters involved in the lawsuit. (Photo by Victor Fraile/Getty Images)

The federal suit was filed in San Jose, where Le lives. It’s being brought by high-profile firms involved in suits against such giants as Apple, Google and JPMorgan Chase & Co.

At a news conference, lawyers declined to put a price tag on the damages being sought.

However, they argued that MMA fighters receive only a fraction of the earnings they could make in a competitive market and their paydays are far less than those of professional boxers.

The suit, which seeks class-action status, names Zuffa LLC, the Las Vegas-based company that does business as the UFC.

“The UFC is aware of the action filed today but has not been served, nor has it had the opportunity to review the document. The UFC will vigorously defend itself and its business practices,” the organization said in a statement.

According to the lawsuit, the UFC has achieved a monopoly over the years by buying up competitors such as Strikeforce and locking out rivals by its control of elite fighters, major sponsors and TV and arena venues.

While there are MMA competitors, such as Bellator, the suit contends that UFC now controls about 90 per cent of the revenues derived from live elite professional MMA bouts. The suit says UFC’s revenues are estimated at about $500 million a year from promotion of live events and from “merchandising, licensing fees, sponsorships, advertising fees, video game fees, and digital media revenue streams.”

The UFC also holds the exclusive worldwide rights to fighters’ names and likenesses in perpetuity, ensuring that the fighters cannot freely license themselves for commercial products or promotions even after their UFC contracts expire — and the UFC’s control doesn’t even expire after the fighter’s death, attorney Michael Dell’Angelo said at the press conference.

The suit contends that fighters who worked with rival sponsors or promoters have faced retaliation, with the UFC refusing to book their bouts or barring them from UFC promotions such as ad campaigns or video games.

At the news conference, lawyers wouldn’t detail what changes they want to make in the current system.

]]>http://o.canada.com/sports/mma-fighters-file-antitrust-lawsuit-in-california-against-ufc-claim-its-a-monopoly/feed0UFCtheassociatedpresscanada Cung Le is one of the fighters involved in the lawsuit. (Photo by Victor Fraile/Getty Images)Dos Santos outpoints Miocic in first UFC event in Arizonahttp://o.canada.com/sports/dos-santos-outpoints-miocic-in-first-ufc-event-in-arizona
http://o.canada.com/sports/dos-santos-outpoints-miocic-in-first-ufc-event-in-arizona#commentsSun, 14 Dec 2014 04:26:41 +0000http://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com?p=561891&preview_id=561891]]>PHOENIX — Junior dos Santos unanimously outpointed Stipe Miocic on Saturday night at US Airways Center in the first UFC event in Arizona.

Dos Santos received winning scores of 48-47, 49-46, 49-46 from the judges.

Dos Santos (17-3) was a 5-to-1 favourite, but Miocic (12-2) made it difficult on the former UFC heavyweight champion for five back-and-forth rounds. In the end, dos Santos’ consistency in landing straight right hands and left hooks that looked to make the difference.

Miocic, a part-time firefighter from Cleveland, clearly thought it was a closer fight, immediately leaving the cage upon hearing the decision.

Another shot at the UFC heavyweight title belt that dos Santos wants may be in the offing, whether it’s against champion Cain Velasquez, who dos Santos has lost to twice, or interim champ Fabricio Werdum, who dos Santos knocked out six years ago.

Dos Santos was able to thwart Miocic’s repeated takedown attempts for most of the bout. Miocic found success with lunging left hooks that landed as dos Santos tried to back away.

Miocic even seemed to be getting stronger as the fight wore on, landing straight rights that deformed dos Santos’ cheekbones.

Dos Santos did drop Miocic to the canvas in the third round with a short left that with Miocic coming in close to finish a combination.

The fifth round was a summary of the entire fight, an action-packing round that left the fighters’ faces bruised and bloody and the crowd wanting more.

It started with Matt Mitrione’s TKO of Gabriel Gonzaga 1:49 into the fight. It was Mitrione’s third straight first-round knockout win. Then Alistair Overeem (38-14, 1 no contest) took care of Stefan Struve (29-7) at 4:13 via TKO (punches) in the battle between Dutch giants.

Other notables: 2008 U.S. Olympic freestyle wrestling gold medallist Henry Cejudo (7-0), a Phoenix native, won his UFC debut with a dominant unanimous decision victory over Dustin Kimura (12-3) of Honolulu in a bantamweight bout on the preliminary card. Lightweight fighter Jamie Varner (21-11-1, 2 no contests), also a Phoenix native, retired in the octagon after losing to underdog Drew Dober (15-6) of Omaha, Nebraska, by submission (rear naked choke) 1:52 into the first round.

Anthony Pettis also stopped Gilbert Melendez with a guillotine choke 1:53 into the second round to defend his UFC lightweight title at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

Lawler (25-10) capped his remarkable mid-career resurgence with a dogged five-round effort against Hendricks (16-3), who won the vacant belt by unanimous decision in their first bout in March.

Anthony Pettis celebrates after defeating Gilbert Menendez in their lightweight title fight during the UFC 181 event at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on December 6, 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Alex Trautwig/Getty Images)

While Hendricks and Lawler didn’t match the theatrics and brutality of their spectacular first fight, Lawler got off to an impressive start in the rematch that had Hendricks backpedaling in the first round. He also finished with a strong fifth, delivering several enormous shots in the final seconds to bring the crowd to its feet.

“I thought I needed to get in his face,” Lawler said. “That’s how we fight in the UFC. That’s how we fight championship fights.”

Hendricks controlled long stretches of the middle rounds with tactics and smart strikes, but he appeared to coast to the finish of the final two rounds, perhaps swaying the judges in Lawler’s favour.

Two judges scored the bout for Lawler, 49-46 and 48-47, while the third favoured Hendricks, 48-47. The Associated Press scored it 48-47 for Lawler.

Hendricks beat Lawler in one of the year’s best fights earlier this year, surviving five bruising rounds to claim Georges St. Pierre’s vacated belt. Hendricks won despite a torn biceps muscle, landing enough strikes and shining in the decisive fifth round.

But while Hendricks’ injury sidelined him through the summer, Lawler stayed hard at work with impressive victories over Jake Ellenberger and Matt Brown, earning his rematch.

Lawler was once best known for failing to reach the heights suggested by his talent, losing five of eight fights in the Strikeforce promotion before rejoining the UFC in early 2013. The former prodigy has realized his potential on MMA’s biggest stage, becoming the first former Strikeforce fighter to win a UFC title with six wins in his last seven bouts.

Hendricks said his injury forced him to turn their first fight into a slugfest, and he attempted to fight more tactically in the rematch. Lawler took advantage by upping his aggression from the opening minutes, punishing Hendricks with knees and punches in a strong opening round.

Hendricks’ mouth was bleeding in the second round as Lawler continued to push forward, but both fighters landed big shots late in the frame. Hendricks imposed his strategy when Lawler noticeably slowed in the third, but Lawler had another burst of energy in the late rounds.

At the final bell, Lawler kept stalking forward while referee Herb Dean got between them. Lawler and his corner celebrated wildly when the decision was read, and Hendricks congratulated Lawler in a good moment between two fighters who seem headed for a decisive third bout next year.

Pettis (18-2) was impressive in his first title defence, finishing Melendez (22-4) for the first time in the veteran Strikeforce champion’s career.

After Melendez largely controlled Pettis against the cage in the first round, Pettis surprised him with a damaging front kick early in the second. Pettis then defended Melendez’s takedown attempt and locked in the choke, getting a quick submission to end his first fight in 16 months.

“I know how good I am, but a lot of people were questioning how good I am,” Pettis said. “This fight went a little bit longer, so you got to see a little more.”

Before the title bouts, heavyweight Todd Duffee celebrated his 29th birthday by stopping Anthony Hamilton just 33 seconds in with a crushing right hand. Heavyweight Travis Browne then stopped Brendan Schaub on punches with 10 seconds left in their opening round.

Josh Samman delivered the best finish of an entertaining undercard, knocking out Eddie Gordon with a spectacular head kick in the second round. Samman, who had been dominated on the ground beforehand, dedicated the win to his girlfriend, Hailey Bevis, who died in a car accident last year.

Also on the undercard, Urijah Faber choked out Francisco Rivera in the second round shortly after poking Rivera in the eye.

Faber, who got booed after replays of the apparently inadvertent eye-poke, is 11-6 over the last six years, with every loss in a title fight.

The UFC announced Saturday that Punk, who gained fame in the WWE, will be joining the mixed martial arts promotion company in 2015.

“My professional wrestling days are over, it’s awesome to be here. This is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time,” Punk said in a UFC release.

“This is my new career, 100-per cent. I’m going to go full steam ahead, all systems go after today, and it’s going to be fun,” he added. “I have nothing but respect for everybody here at the UFC, everybody who steps in the Octagon to fight.

“And when it’s all said and done, when I’m finished, everybody’s going to have to respect me because I have come here to fight.”

The former WWE champion rose to fame in 2011 when he delivered a stirring speech — which he called a “pipebomb” — where he openly criticized the WWE and its owners, particularly Vince McMahon.

Although that monologue was part of a storyline, his real-life dissatisfaction with the WWE led to him walking out on his contract in January and his retirement from pro wrestling.

The real-life feud between Punk and the WWE boiled over again last week when he revealed in a lengthy podcast interview that the company had sent him his severance papers on his wedding day. He also alleged that the WWE neglected to properly treat a staph infection on his back and other lingering injuries including a concussion.

“I felt like it was now or never,” said the 36-year-old Punk. “I have a limited window most fighters don’t have.”

The terms of Punk’s contract with the UFC have not yet been disclosed, but it is a multi-fight deal. He is expected to fight in either the middleweight or welterweight division.

LOS ANGELES — When Anthony Pettis steps back into the octagon at UFC 181, the flashy lightweight champion will be in just his fourth fight in more than three years. Although he is one of mixed martial arts’ top talents, Pettis hasn’t even seen a second round since October 2011.

Gilbert Melendez intends to make Pettis regret all of his injuries and inactivity in a title fight that could serve as the masterwork of his long career.

“There’s nothing left to accomplish except this,” Melendez said this week. “If I can do this, I feel like I’m one of the greatest of all time.”

While Pettis (17-2) hopes to begin a long reign as one of the UFC’s top stars at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas on Saturday night, Melendez (22-3) relishes the chance to take the champion into areas he hasn’t visited in years. While Melendez’s big right hand is his greatest strength, he believes he can also win a mental matchup with the champion.

“It’ll get real interesting when we get out of the first round and he hasn’t hit me with any of that spinning stuff,” Melendez said. “What’s he going to do when we’re in a fight?”

Melendez’s shot at Pettis is the penultimate event at UFC 181, a rare card featuring two title fights. Welterweight champion Johny Hendricks returns from a long layoff for his own first title defence in a rematch with Robbie Lawler. The card also features two heavyweight bouts and popular bantamweight Urijah Faber.

But the MMA world has been anticipating Pettis’ return to the cage for 16 months, ever since he claimed the belt with a first-round submission victory over divisive champion Benson Henderson.

Pettis’ incredible athleticism makes him a highlight-reel staple — never more than in December 2010, when he jumped off the side of the cage to flatten Henderson with the now-famous “Showtime” kick in their first meeting. Pettis can’t deny his absence hurt, but he’s eager to make up for lost time, perhaps fighting four times in the next year.

“I won the belt, but then I was off for a year,” Pettis said. “I can’t consider myself the best of the best until I prove it for about a year. That’s what I want to start this Saturday night.”

Pettis’ fame has grown even during his absence from the octagon. Along with several endorsement deals, he is the first UFC star to appear on a Wheaties box, which was unveiled in Las Vegas on Thursday. Pettis wears a shirt and tie on the box, the lightweight strap hanging over his right shoulder.

Yet the Milwaukee native wasn’t an instant star in MMA, and he realizes how quickly his success can disappear with a loss. He respects Melendez’s striking, but believes he can counter it with a well-rounded game.

“I’ve been calling a first-round knockout, and I’m still going for it, but he doesn’t drop easy,” Pettis said. “If it doesn’t happen, I’m prepared to go five rounds. He’s one of the best guys in the sport, but I’m going to show everybody what I’m all about if they’ve forgotten.”

Melendez already got a UFC lightweight title shot in April 2013 after dominating the weight class in the Strikeforce promotion. The San Francisco-based fighter made it through five tough-to-score rounds against Henderson, but lost a razor-thin split decision in the Bay Area.

When Pettis took the belt away from Henderson last year, Melendez knew he had another shot at the title. Still, he had to wait: Pettis tore a ligament in his knee and recovered gradually from the surgery.

Melendez passed the time by commentating on ESPN, and he agreed to coach the UFC’s new women’s strawweights opposite Pettis on the current season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” the promotion’s long-running reality show. The foes barely interacted during their six weeks on the show, preferring to save their enmity for UFC 181.

“I didn’t want to get to know him,” Melendez said. “I don’t have a problem with him, but that’s not what I want. I want to beat him up and take his belt.”

TORONTO — Canadian Rory MacDonald finds out Saturday who he will have to beat for the UFC welterweight title.

The 25-year-old from Kelowna, B.C., who trains out of Montreal, has been promised the next shot at the winner of Saturday’s UFC 181 main event in Las Vegas between champion Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks and No. 1 contender Ruthless (Robbie) Lawler.

Hendricks (16-2) won a unanimous decision over Lawler (24-10 with one no contest) when the two met in March at UFC 171 to fill the title vacated by Montreal’s Georges St-Pierre.

Hendricks lost a controversial split decision to St-Pierre at UFC 167 while Lawler won a split decision over MacDonald on the same November 2013 card.

MacDonald (18-2) will be cageside at the Mandalay Bay Events Center to figure out his future, with the ensuring title fight possibly coming as early as March in Montreal depending on how battered Saturday’s winner is.

Hendricks says he’s not looking beyond Saturday, although he knows all about the well-rounded Canadian waiting in the wings.

MacDonald also has a new nickname, with Red King replacing Ares which replaced The Water Boy.

GSP may also be a factor again down the line. The 33-year-old ex-champ has yet to say whether he will return to action following his hiatus.

The 31-year-old Hendricks has not fought since securing the title, requiring surgery in the aftermath to repair a torn bicep. Hendricks had hurt the arm in training and the injury got worse in the first round.

He promises he will be a different fighter this time. Hendricks, a two-time NCAA wrestling champion, blames the arm injury for making just two of 10 takedown attempts against Lawler. He also hurt his shin in the fight.

“Fighting is a tough business,” he said “It’s a gruelling business, it’s a grind. What was nice was I got that desire back, that willing to fight again, to remember why you fight … Getting that hunger back I think is really going to help me for that next fight.”

Hendricks has no apologies to make. Hendricks-Lawler 1 was a thriller, with the champion winning the first two rounds before Lawler came on in the third and fourth. Hendricks decided it with a gritty fifth round.

“Robbie’s very tough. He’s very hard to put away,” said Hendricks.

He says Lawler pulled ahead in the middle rounds because the injured arm hindered his defence.

“He saw those openings and he capitalized on it,” said Hendricks, who trains in the Dallas area. “That’s what I’ve got to make sure I don’t allow this time.”

The two fighters attempted a combined 728 significant strikes, with Hendricks good on 159 of 397 and Lawler successful on 150 of 331.

“He just did a couple of things better than me,” said Lawler, who has moved his family to Florida from Iowa to train year-round at American Top Team. “He’s a competitor, he knows how to win, he knows how to win rounds. He competed a little bit better than me that night.”

While Hendricks healed up, Lawler fought twice in the aftermath of the title loss. The 32-year-old stopped Jake Ellenberger in May and won a decision over Matt (The Immortal) Brown in July.

“I love pushing myself,” said Lawler. “I’m a competitor. I love to work out. I love to fight … It’s just how I am. If I’m healthy, I’m going to fight.”

]]>http://o.canada.com/news/canadian-rory-macdonald-to-find-out-welterweight-title-path-at-ufc-181/feed1Rory MacDonaldthecanadianpressRory MacDonald stopped Tarec Saffiedine at an UFC event in Halifax. (Jonathan Hayward/CP) Johny Hendricks blocks a punch from Robbie Lawler during a UFC 171 mixed martial arts welterweight title bout. (AP Photo/Matt Strasen)UFC will issue fighter uniforms next year in Reebok sponsorship dealhttp://o.canada.com/sports/ufc-will-issue-fighter-uniforms-next-year-in-reebok-sponsorship-deal
http://o.canada.com/sports/ufc-will-issue-fighter-uniforms-next-year-in-reebok-sponsorship-deal#commentsTue, 02 Dec 2014 16:47:53 +0000http://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com?p=554793&preview_id=554793]]>LOS ANGELES — UFC fighters will wear uniforms made by Reebok next year after the promotion agreed to a sponsorship deal with the sports apparel company.

UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta said the six-year deal will change the esthetics and economics of the world’s dominant mixed martial arts promotion by creating a professional, standard look for fighters’ shorts and additional gear in a famously individualistic sport. The uniforms will be revealed shortly before the fighters don them in July.

“It elevates the sport,” UFC President Dana White said. “For everybody to be dressed the same, to look the same, it just makes everything more professional. Every year, we take this thing to another level.”

The new deal with Reebok largely will make up for the lost revenue from sponsors on fighters’ trunks. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

The UFC will no longer allow its fighters to sell sponsorship patches on their trunks, a time-honoured tradition in MMA and boxing. White and Fertitta said the new deal largely will make up for the lost revenue, and the fighters still can have sponsorship deals outside the octagon.

Fertitta said the promotion is distributing the “vast majority” of the money from its Reebok deal directly to its fighters, partly in a tiered system based on divisional rankings. White said the UFC itself will make almost no money from the deal for the first few years.

“We’ve done a lot of research in the last two to three years,” Fertitta said. “We feel like we’ve created a program that’s going to be worth at least as much, and in some cases more, than they’re making (with sponsorships).”

Some fighters have criticized the prospect of UFC uniforms when the idea was floated by White in recent years, concerned about the interruption of sponsorship deals that sometimes pay the fighters more than their UFC contracts. Other fighters welcome their piece of a major sportswear deal while fighting in uniforms comparable to the gear worn by athletes in the other major sports.

“I think it’s good for the UFC brand,” welterweight title contender Robbie Lawler told The Associated Press. “I think it’s going to be nice for the fighters to get a little extra money, and I think in the end it’s going to be a little easier. We’re going to be getting some of the sponsorship money that the UFC is already getting. It’s going to be big for the sport.”

CEO Lorenzo Fertitta said the UFC could put corporate logos on its uniforms in the future, although the deals probably would be limited to one sponsor at one event. (Photo by Michael Cohen/Getty Images)

Yet the UFC will eliminate many of its fighters’ current methods of making money in a sport that’s notoriously unprofitable for up-and-coming fighters. For instance, the UFC also is doing away with those garish, sometimes amateurish sponsorship banners typically hung behind competitors during MMA fight introductions.

“It makes me physically sick to my stomach when I see those guys rolling out that banner, but I never stopped it because I didn’t want to take money away from guys when I couldn’t supplement that money,” White said. “Now we can give them something better.”

Fertitta said the UFC could put corporate logos on its uniforms in the future, although the deals probably would be limited to one sponsor at one event.

“If we do put a company on there, it’s going to be a major global brand,” he said. “Think along the lines of European soccer.”

The UFC’s deal with Reebok is its biggest financial agreement outside its television contracts, White said, although the UFC is a private company that is notoriously reluctant to discuss its finances, including fighter pay.

Not all individuality will be lost under the deal. Fighters will be free to choose from different styles of uniforms, from the board shorts worn by many fighters to the tighter bicycle shorts favoured by former welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre and others. Women will have the option of wearing shorts with a skirt front.

UFC executives have chafed in recent years when its fighters’ uniform misadventures reflected negatively on a company pursuing a more polished, professional image in line with its Fox broadcast deal and increased international presence.

Welterweight Dennis Hallman became a viral sensation — and not in a good way — after wearing incredibly skimpy blue shorts at UFC 133 in August 2011, briefly exposing himself during a first-round loss to Brian Ebersole. Hallman claimed he lost a bet.

At a Fox show in Sacramento last December, lightweight Cody McKenzie wore plain white basketball shorts with the tags still attached and a Nike logo crudely drawn on the leg. McKenzie, who was subsequently released by the UFC, said he had forgotten his fight shorts at the hotel.

]]>http://o.canada.com/sports/ufc-will-issue-fighter-uniforms-next-year-in-reebok-sponsorship-deal/feed0UFC Fight Night: Rockhold v BispingtheassociatedpresscanadaThe new deal with Reebok largely will make up for the lost revenue from sponsors on fighters' trunks. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images)Lorenzo Fertitta, UFC Chairman and President, speaks during a press conference to announce commitment to bring UFC to Madison Square Garden and New York State at Madison Square Garden on January 13, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Michael Cohen/Getty Images)Werdum claims heavyweight title with win over Hunthttp://o.canada.com/sports/werdum-claims-heavyweight-title-with-win-over-hunt
http://o.canada.com/sports/werdum-claims-heavyweight-title-with-win-over-hunt#commentsSun, 16 Nov 2014 05:41:42 +0000http://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com?p=545661&preview_id=545661]]>MEXICO CITY — Fabricio Werdum won the interim heavyweight title when he stopped Mark Hunt in the second round on Saturday night at UFC 180.

Werdum (19-5-1) got off to a slow start, but hit Hunt with a right knee to the face to secure the win in the UFC’s debut in Mexico.

The event was supposed to be a showcase for Cain Velasquez, the Mexican-American champion who has a strong following in Mexico. Instead, the oft-injured Velasquez hurt his right knee and dropped out of his bout against Werdum last month, sending the UFC scrambling for something to show the 21,000 fans who sold out the Arena Cuidad de Mexico in eight hours.

Hunt (10-9-1), a 40-year-old Australian brawler with a history of thrilling fights, stepped in, but was unable to keep up with his Brazilian opponent.

Dan Henderson, returning to middleweight, will meet Gegard Mousasi in the co-main event.

The Swedish card will take place at the Tele2 Arena, home to soccer teams Hammarby IF and Djurgardens IF. It’s the UFC’s second major stadium event — UFC 129 drew more than 55,000 to Toronto’s Rogers Centre in April 2011 to see Montreal’s Georges St-Pierre defeat Jake Shields.

Sweden’s Alexander Gustafsson (left) throws a punch at American Jon Jones. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

The Gustafsson-Johnson winner will face either current champion Jon (Bones) Jones or Daniel Cormier, who meet UFC 182 on Jan. 3 in Las Vegas.

Jones (20-1) was originally slated to fight Gustafsson (16-2) but the Swede had to withdraw with a knee injury. Jones won a close decision over Gustafsson when the two met at UFC 165 in Toronto in September 2013.

The UFC had suspended Johnson pending reports of domestic abuse. But he was reinstated after a civil temporary protection order against him was withdrawn in a Florida Court.

“The dismissal of the case, along with an independent investigation that was commissioned by the UFC organization, brings closure to this matter for Johnson and allows him to return to competition in the UFC,” the UFC said in a statement last week.

With the victory, Aldo remained the only champion the division has known and extended his winning streak to 15, one short of Anderson Silva’s record of 16 straight victories from 2006 to 2012.

The highly anticipated mixed martial arts fight was a rematch of their encounter in Rio de Janeiro in 2012. Aldo knocked out Mendes with a powerful knee strike to his face with a second left in the first round of that match.

Mendes extended the fight to the fifth round this time but still couldn’t come up with the victory. All three judges scored it 49-46.

“I deserved to win,” Aldo said. “He hit me a few times but I hit him a lot more. It was a great a fight and I’m sure everyone enjoyed it.”

It was the seventh straight successful title defence for the 28-year-old Aldo (25-1), who is unbeaten since 2005. He was under extra pressure as the only Brazilian to hold a belt among all UFC weight divisions. It could have been the first time in eight years that Brazil was without a champion.

The 29-year-old Mendes (16-2) had been dominant since his lone career defeat two years ago in Rio, winning four of his next five fights by knockout.

He was aggressive from the start this time, connecting early with kicks and punches and opening a wound on Aldo’s nose. But the Brazilian recovered fast and finished strong in the first round, twice knocking Mendes down with powerful strikes.

“He rang my bell for sure,” Mendes said. “I was just going so hard I didn’t know what was going on. I was just trying to push myself and obviously just outstrike him and mix things up well.”

Both fighters took fewer chances in the second round. Aldo made a strong charge near the end of the round but couldn’t finalize his opponent.

Mendes tried to take the initiative more often in the final two rounds but did not have enough to turn things his way. Aldo finished with a heavily swollen left eye.

In the co-main, American Phil Davis (13-2), a former NCAA wrestling national champion, beat Brazilian Glover Teixeira (22-4) by unanimous decision to earn his first shot at challenging light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. Teixeira lost to Jones in his previous fight.

In other main card fights, Beneil Dariush of Iran beat Brazilian Diego Ferreira in a unanimous decision in the lightweight division, and Darren Elkins of the United States edged Brazilian Lucas Martins with a split decision in the featherweight division.

Brazilian Fabio Maldonado got past Hans Stringer of the Netherlands with a technical knockout in the second round in a light heavyweight matchup, celebrating by hugging Silva atop the octagon.

In a preliminary fight, American welterweight Neil Magny beat Brazilian William Patolino by technical knockout in the third round to win for the fifth time in a row this year and tie Roger Huerta’s modern-era record for most UFC victories in a single calendar year.

The Team Alpha Male fighters are both on the UFC 179 fight card, with Fili facing Felipe Arantes in the prelims and Mendes taking on champion Jose Aldo for the 145-pound crown in the main event in Rio de Janeiro.

Mendes (16-1) was stopped by Aldo (24-1) with one second remaining in the first round when they met at UFC 142 in January 2012.

“I see him really putting on a show and really dominating,” Fili said. “I think he’s going to make a huge statement.

“Obviously I have a biased opinion but in my opinion Chad’s the best 145er in the world. And I think he’s going to show that. He got caught (in the last fight) and it happens to everyone. I don’t think it’s going to happen to him twice. He’s just ready. You watch him train, you watch him spar, you watch the stuff that he does to get ready for his fight. You just look at him and you just know there’s nobody else in the world that can beat that guy. He’s a monster.”

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – OCTOBER 24: Jose Aldo Jr weighs in during the UFC 179 weigh-in at Maracanazinho on October 24, 2014 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

Mendes is hoping to follow in the footsteps of Team Alpha Male training partner T.J. Dillashaw, who upset Renan Barao for the bantamweight title at UFC 177 in August.

Fili, meanwhile, just hopes to take advantage of training with fighters like Mendes.

“Training next to a guy like Chad is pretty crazy because it keeps you pushing,” said Fili. “Like he’s so fast, so explosive, he’s so talented. And he works so hard. It’s not like training with someone that you’re better than. He’s pretty much going to be better than you everywhere. So you’re always pushing to keep up with him and it makes you better.”

After 20 years performing, choreographing, co-ordinating and directing movie stunts together — not to mention setting up their own stunt company — Stahelski and Leitch have become experts at big-screen action.

Starting as stunt doubles for Keanu Reeves and Brad Pitt, they’ve grown to oversee stunt action on blockbuster fare such as “The Wolverine,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and “The Hunger Games” franchise. For the last few years, they’ve been ready to take the next step: finding a film of their own to direct.

Reeves helped make that happen when he introduced them to “John Wick,” an action-saturated thrill ride in theatres Oct. 24.

“When I got the script… I immediately thought of Chad and Dave for the action design, but I was secretly hoping they’d want to direct it,” Reeves said in a recent interview. “I knew that they would love the genre and I knew that they would love John Wick. And I thought the worlds that get created — the real world and then this underworld — would be attractive to them, and it was.”

This photo released by Lionsgate shows Keanu Reeves as John Wick in a scene from the film, “John Wick.” (AP Photo/Lionsgate, David Lee)

Reeves stars as the titular character, a retired killer-for-hire who’s drawn back into the underworld, seeking revenge after a group of thugs steal his car and kill the dog given to him by his dead wife. Willem Dafoe also stars.

After reading the script, Stahelski and Leitch, both martial arts experts and Bruce Lee fans, told Reeves they wanted to tell the story of “John Wick” with a graphic-novel twist, creating a stylized, heightened reality where the suit-clad killer could systematically shoot 84 people in a nightclub without batting an eye or wrinkling his clothes.

They also wanted to craft a character whose outsized motivations would make sense to audiences. And they wanted to prove to themselves that, after 20 years in the movie business, they could tell a story from top to bottom as filmmakers.

“It was the challenge — and the ego of ourselves — to prove that we could do something different,” said Stahelski, a tall, lean man in his mid-40s with an authoritative demeanour that belies his easy smile. He’s been friends with Reeves since working as his stunt double in “The Matrix” movies.

Reeves supported the pair’s pitch to producers, and the veteran stuntmen had their first directing gig.

Chad Stahelski, left, co-director of the film “John Wick,” demonstrates an uppercut during a training session. (Photo by Casey Curry/Invision/AP)

Stahelski and Leitch, who was Pitt’s stunt double in “Fight Club” and “Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” formed their stunt company, 87Eleven Action Design, in 2004. Their facility, tucked inside an industrial complex near Los Angeles International Airport, is a hub of muscle, flexibility and creativity, with a team of 16 choreographers on staff.

One section of the warehouse space holds weight machines and gymnastics mats; another has a springboard floor where lithe athlete-actors practice artful falls into stacks of empty cardboard boxes. Various swords, battle axes and medieval weapons stand in the corner beside a wood-and-metal rig that can be adjusted for parkour or high falls. Posters of the movies the company has worked on line the walls.

Reeves spent three months working with half a dozen 87Eleven athletes to prepare to become John Wick, learning judo, Jiu jitsu and other fighting styles, plus mastering firing and reloading an assortment of high-powered weapons.

“It was very intense,” he said, “but that’s what I like.”

Stahelski and Leitch typically take on several big projects a year as stunt co-ordinators and second-unit directors, creating and shooting action sequences for other directors’ big-budget projects. But they stepped away from those opportunities to spend 18 months making “John Wick.”

This photo released by Lionsgate shows Keanu Reeves as John Wick in a scene from the film, “John Wick.” (AP Photo/Lionsgate, David Lee)

“Stunt co-ordinating is a good training ground for directing, because you have exposure to all the departments in film,” Leitch said. “There’s a lot of directing within the stunt co-ordinator’s job.”

Stunt co-ordinators also have to understand camera angles to make fight sequences convincing, he said, and they know how to work with actors because they spend months preparing them for action roles. Perhaps the best known stuntman-turned-director is the late Hal Needham, who left stunts behind to write and direct 1977’s “Smokey and the Bandit.”

Though Stahelski and Leitch shared duties on “John Wick,” just as they do with 87Eleven, Stahelski is credited as the film’s director and Leitch as producer. Maybe because they’re hoping for more opportunities behind the camera.

“Our focus has always been to be filmmakers first and department heads second,” Stahelski said. “Now we’re following our passion and our dream.”

]]>http://o.canada.com/entertainment/two-veteran-stuntmen-become-directors-of-john-wick-film/feed0Chad-Stahelski.jpgtheassociatedpresscanadaThis photo released by Lionsgate shows Keanu Reeves as John Wick in a scene from the film, "John Wick." The action film co-directed by Chad Stahelski and David Leitch is in theaters Oct. 24. (AP Photo/Lionsgate, David Lee) In this Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2014 photo, Chad Stahelski, left, co-director of the film "John Wick," demonstrates an uppercut during a training session at 87Eleven Action Design in Inglewood, Calif. Stahelski and co-director, David Leitch have a shorthand when it comes to shooting sprees, mixed martial arts throw-downs, crazy car crashes and all kinds of explosions. After two decades performing, choreographing, coordinating and directing movie stunts together, Stahelski and Leitch have become experts at big-screen thrills. Their new movie starring Keanu Reeves releases in theaters on Oct. 24. (Photo by Casey Curry/Invision/AP) This photo released by Lionsgate shows Keanu Reeves as John Wick in a scene from the film, "John Wick." The action film co-directed by Chad Stahelski and David Leitch is in theaters Oct. 24. (AP Photo/Lionsgate, David Lee) Welterweight Rory MacDonald’s UFC title shot is years in the makinghttp://o.canada.com/news/welterweight-rory-macdonalds-ufc-title-shot-is-years-in-the-making
http://o.canada.com/news/welterweight-rory-macdonalds-ufc-title-shot-is-years-in-the-making#commentsThu, 09 Oct 2014 23:37:37 +0000http://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com/?p=526637]]>TORONTO – It’s been nine years since Rory (Ares) MacDonald made his pro debut in Prince George, B.C., against Terry Thiara.

His parents had to sign a waiver to get the local commission to OK the bout for the 16-year-old lightweight. Even David Lea, his longtime trainer at Toshido Mixed Martial Arts in Kelowna, was a little concerned.

Lea had no qualms about the teenager’s talents. But he knew anything could happen in mixed martial arts.

“This sport there are so many variables,” he said. “You zig when you should have zagged and then all of a sudden you’re out. I remember having some real anxiety right before the fight thinking if this kid gets hurt, I’m never going to hear the end of it.”

MacDonald proved Lea right. He needed just two minutes 11 seconds to win via rear-naked choke and start a career that has taken him to a UFC title shot.

“Of course, that was the beginning of a journey,” MacDonald recalled Thursday from Montreal.

“I was definitely nervous for that fight, probably the most nervous I’ve ever been — for anything,” he added. “It was a big, big obstacle in my life, that first fight.”

Nineteen bouts later, the 25-year-old MacDonald is counting the months to fighting for the UFC welterweight championship.

“It’s good news,” he said of his date with destiny. “But I’m not going to be completely happy until it’s in my hands for real.”

MacDonald (18-2) will fight the winner of the UFC 181 main event between 170-pound champion Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks and No. 1 contender (Ruthless) Robbie Lawler. They face off Dec. 6 in a Las Vegas rematch of their UFC 171 bout in March that decided the successor to Georges St-Pierre.

MacDonald, who lost to Lawler four fights ago and has not faced Hendricks, says it does not matter who he faces. He just wants to fight the best man.

MacDonald is not sure whether he will be cageside in December to discover his opponent. If he has his choice, he won’t.

“I don’t really like Vegas,” he said.

In confirming Wednesday that MacDonald was in the 170-pound title on-deck circle, UFC president Dana White did not specify a date or city other than to say his championship challenge would be in Canada.

“I’d love it if it was in Vancouver,” said MacDonald, a native of Kelowna who fights out of Montreal. “That would be my ideal spot. Anywhere in Canada would make me happy.”

The UFC has a March date reserved in Montreal. A Toronto date is also expected in 2015.

Tom Wright, director of operations for the UFC in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, said last week he expects two or three pay-per-view shows in Canada next year.

The UFC has held three fights in Vancouver to date. MacDonald has been on two of those cards, losing to Carlos (The Natural Born Killer) Condit at UFC 115 in June 2010 and beating Tyron (The Chosen One) Woodley at UFC 174 in June 2014.

In the wake of his weekend win over Tarec Saffiedine in Halifax, MacDonald is headed back to Kelowna to see family and friends. While he does not know the date of his title shot, his training continues.

“Nothing crazy though,” he said.

The black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu is also prepping for a no-gi grappling match with J.T. Torres at Metamoris 5 on Nov. 22 in Long Beach, Calif.

MacDonald, ranked No. 2 among welterweight contenders, has established his championship credentials, winning three straight and eight of his last nine in the UFC.

MacDonald is bidding to join St-Pierre and Carlos (Ronin) Newton as the only Canadians to hold a UFC championship.

St-Pierre vacated the title last December, saying he needed time away from the sport. He kept training and is currently rehabbing an injured knee. The 33-year-old from Montreal says he has not decided whether he is coming back.

MacDonald and St-Pierre, who both train at the Tristar Gym in Montreal, both said they would never fight each other for real.

So will MacDonald turn to the former champion for advice before his title shot?

“If I see him, I’m sure he’ll have some words for me,” said MacDonald. “But at the end of the day, it’s a fight. Sure there’s a piece of gold at the end of the road, but I’ve been in 20 professional fights now and I’m looking at this fight just as I have the other 20 fights.”

MacDonald was just 14 when he came to Lea’s gym. He soon became the first one in and last one out, soaking up everything he could about the sport.

“I’ve never taught anybody who was able to learn faster,” said Lea, pointing to MacDonald’s ability to maintain his focus.

MacDonald, then 20, became the youngest fighter in the UFC when he signed a four-fight deal in late 2009.

He was 9-0, winning the King of the Cage Canadian lightweight title at 18 — in his sixth fight — before winning the King of the Cage world 155-pound title a year later.

In between those fights, he stepped away from the sport in 2008, lacking focus and needing some time to sort things outside the cage. So he left Kelowna for Langley, B.C., stopped training for five months and started a carpentry job.

“It was a difficult time in my life, personally and in my martial arts career,” he said. “I was struggling for motivation. I wasn’t focused on martial arts, I did the right thing, I took a few months away and I came back hungry as ever.”

He moved back to Kelowna, and started training again. Three wins later, he had a UFC contract. And the road to the title began.

He needed four minutes 27 seconds to dispatch veteran Mike (The Joker) Guymon in his UFC debut in January 2010.

His friends and training partners gushed about him.

“I see the future of this sport in Rory MacDonald,” said middleweight David (The Crow) Loiseau.

“Rory represents the new generation of fighters,” said former UFC and Pride fighter Denis Kang.

In those days his nickname was The Waterboy, a reference to the Adam Sandler film. Like Sandler’s character in the movie, MacDonald apparently did not react well to anyone who tried to take liberties with him.

He has since changed it to the more bellicose Ares.

After Guymon, the UFC threw MacDonald into the deep end with a fight with Condit.

MacDonald’s approach to fighting changed after his loss to Condit, a fight that saw him take it to the veteran only to fade in the third round.

He admitted he let the moment get to him at UFC 115. While he had fought in the UFC once before, the adrenalin was pumping overtime for the fight in his home province.

“I got very emotional,” he said at the time. “It was a home town (crowd), they pumped me up. I had a lot of pressure on me, a lot of nerves. It was a big fight for me. It got very emotional for me, I just wanted to go in there and put on a good show, so I got a little headstrong.”

Asked if he could hear the Rogers Arena crowd chanting “Rory, Rory,” he replied: “It was pretty much all I could hear.”

His basic purse for the Condit oss was US$8,000 although he picked up another $85,000 for a fight of the night bonus. Against Maia at UFC 170 in February, his last fight for which purse figures were released, he collected a minimum of US$150,000 including a pair of $50,000 bonuses.

Today he fights without emotion. And he has managed to separate himself from the pitfalls of fame. He says the glitz, glamour and cameras are not what he works for.

“I’ve been able to separate the show from reality, some people can’t,” he said.

“I don’t focus on that,” he added. “I focus on the reality of the situation and just fight.”

When he steps into the cage, a stone-faced MacDonald stares across at his opponent. The smile only comes when his arm is raised.

MacDonald moved to Montreal after the Condit fight, to train full time at Tristar, although he also spends time at Renzo Gracie’s New York gym. He won five straight before losing to Lawler at UFC 167 in November 2013.

Lea says the Lawler loss also changed the young fighter.

“He was training with the wrong mindset and he was training to fight too conservatively,” said Lea. “There is that balance. You don’t want to be reckless but you also don’t want to sit back and just be reactionary … He just Lawler dictate the pace of the fight at the end there.

“I don’t think he’ll every make that mistake again. I think you saw him immediately, in his fights after Lawler, come out and really try to set the pace and take away that space and be the one who’s dictating where the fight’s happening. If he gets that, with a little bit more of a killer instinct when they’ (his opponents) are in troubles, I don’t think anybody’s going to stop Rory.”

While a private type, MacDonald says away from the gym he is into “regular young guy stuff.”

“I like video games, I like shopping, I like girls,” he said in a 2012 interview.

You can add clothes to that list. Like GSP, MacDonald will slip into a well-tailored suit for his post-fight interviews.

UFC president Dana White has confirmed that the 25-year-old welterweight will fight the winner of the UFC 181 main event between 170-pound champion Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks and No. 1 contender (Ruthless) Robbie Lawler.

Hendricks and Lawler meet Dec. 6 in a Las Vegas rematch of their UFC 171 bout in March that decided the successor to Georges St-Pierre.

MacDonald, ranked No. 2 among welterweight contenders, has won three straight and eight of his last nine in the UFC.

“It’s pretty impossible to deny Rory that, whoever comes out of that Hendricks-Lawler fight, he’s the next guy in line,” White told The Canadian Press on Wednesday.

MacDonald, a native of Kelowna, B.C., who fights out of Montreal, is bidding to join St-Pierre and Carlos (Ronin) Newton as the only Canadians to hold a UFC championship.

Featherweight Mark (The Machine) Hominick of Thamesford, Ont., and Montreal middleweight Patrick (The Predator) Cote lost title fights in the UFC. Alexis Davis failed in a bid for the women’s bantamweight crown.

Tom Wright, director of operations for the UFC in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, said last week he expects two or three pay-per-view shows in Canada next year.

MacDonald has not faced Hendricks. He lost a split decision to Lawler when they met at UFC 167 in November 2013.

MacDonald, while no trash-talker, has been making his claim to a title shot in recent months.

“One day, very soon the belt will be mine,” MacDonald said after winning a unanimous decision over Woodley at UFC 174 in Vancouver in June.

After beating Saffiedine, the Canadian argued he was the logical contender.

“I really don’t see anyone else,” he said.

On Monday, he tweeted a smiling photo of himself sitting on a bench, holding a sign that said “Title shot or bust!”

It’s hard to argue with him. No. 4 Carlos Condit, while he holds a 2010 win over MacDonald, has fought for the title and lost and is currently recovering from a knee injury. No. 5 Matt Brown lost to Lawler in June and No. 6 Hector Lombard is set to face Josh Burkman at UFC 182 in January.

MacDonald, a training partner of St-Pierre’s, said he would never fight his friend. With GSP on hiatus from the sport, there are no such obstacles in his course.

Hendricks is currently listed as more than a 2-1 favourite to beat Lawler.

]]>http://o.canada.com/news/ufc-boss-dana-white-says-canadian-rory-macdonald-to-get-his-title-shot/feed0Rory MacDonaldthecanadianpressUFC 170UFC 167Rory MacDonald defeats Tarec Saffiedine to move closer to UFC title shothttp://o.canada.com/sports/rory-macdonald-defeats-tarec-saffiedine-to-move-closer-to-ufc-title-shot
http://o.canada.com/sports/rory-macdonald-defeats-tarec-saffiedine-to-move-closer-to-ufc-title-shot#commentsSun, 05 Oct 2014 05:52:51 +0000http://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com/?p=524092]]>Eleven months ago, Rory MacDonald missed out on the opportunity he had been waiting for since he was 16 years old. He insisted if he was ever in the same position, it wouldn’t happen again.

On Saturday night – technically, it was around 1:40 a.m. ET on Sunday by the time he entered Ultimate Fighting Championship’s octagon at the Halifax Scotiabank Centre – the Kelowna, B.C. native backed up his words.

The No. 2-ranked welterweight MacDonald (18-2) may just have earned himself his long-awaited title shot, when he did what no opponent had previously been able to do against Tarec Saffiedine (15-4) – knock him out.

MacDonald scored what could be the biggest victory of his pro career, stopping Saffiedine at 1:28 of the third round in the main event of UFC Fight Night, from a sold-out Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

“I think it goes without saying I’m next for that title,” said the 25-year-old who now trains out of the Tristar gym in Montreal.

Reigning champion Johny Hendricks takes on No. 1 contender Robbie Lawler in the main event of UFC 181 on Dec. 6 in Las Vegas. MacDonald feels like there is no doubt about who should face the winner.

“I’m next for that title shot,” he said.

MacDonald, who turned professional at the same age most teens get their driver’s license, missed out on his title dream when, last November, he lost a heartbreaking split decision to Robbie Lawler (who then faced Hendricks for the vacant title, after Georges St-Pierre relinquished his crown and stepped away from the fight game). Disappointed as he was, he’s bounced back from that loss, on Saturday improving his record in 2014 to 3-0. He has wins this year over top-10 fighters Demian Maia, Tyron Woodley and Saffiedine.

“I have no excuses,” said Saffiedine. “I prepared myself and felt ready. I’m just going to have to get back in the gym and work on some things.”

Saffiedine, the final Strikeforce welterweight champion before the promotion was folded into UFC, came into Saturday’s bout on a five-fight winning streak, including his UFC debut in January over Hyun Gyu Lim.

“I really trained hard for this guy. I have a ton of respect for him,” said MacDonald, a 4-to-1 favourite coming into the bout. “I was very focused for this.”

The Halifax crowd was clearly behind their Canadian favourite, with chants of ‘Let’s go, Rory’ starting in the first 10 seconds of the fight. Through two rounds, Rory used his six-inch reach advantage to methodically score in the stand-up, including knocking Saffiedine down, though Saffiedine was able to land several of his renowned kicks to MacDonald’s legs.

The finish came early in the third when MacDonald landed an overhand right followed by a left uppercut dropped Saffiedine, and MacDonald quickly pounced and finished him on the mat with a half-dozen right hands.

“I was just going with the flow, reacting as it went. I found it,” said MacDonald. “I wasn’t really trying to force anything and it worked.

“The margin of error when you get to this level is so small and when you force things, you make mistakes. Sometimes you get finishes and sometimes it goes to a decision. Tonight I caught him and finished him.”

In other main-card matches:

* In a critical bantamweight bout between potential title challengers, No. 4-ranked Raphael Assuncao (21-4) kept himself near the front of the line with a unanimous decision over 10th-ranked Bryan Caraway (19-7).

Though Assuncao was awarded unanimous scores of 30-27, the co-main event featured back-and-forth. Assuncao unleashed vicious kicks to Caraway’s legs only to see Caraway respond with solid counterpunches. The two stood and banged in stand-up exchanges but also put in work during scrambles on the ground.

Assuncao came into the match on a six-fight winning streak, including a split decision over current bantamweight champ TJ Dillashaw almost one year ago to the day. Caraway, who competed in Season 14 of The Ultimate Fighter, had won four of five to vault himself into the top-10.

* Nordine Taleb (10-2), who introduced himself to UFC fans on TUF Nations, was awarded a split decision over Li Jingliang (9-3) in a welterweight match. The judges scored it 29-28 and 30-27 for Montreal’s Taleb and 29-28 for Jingliang.

FIGHT NOTES: On the undercard, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia native Chris Kelades – an injury replacement on five days’ notice – received one of the night’s biggest ovations from his home-province fans when he won a unanimous decision over Patrick Holohan in a preliminary bout. “I didn’t think a decision was in the cards because I wasn’t sure I’d have the energy to go the distance,” he said. “The crowd was definitely my turbo boost … I could tell before the fight I was getting a bit too amped up so I just remembered I’ve fought in Halifax before and just tried to picture those fights.” … Four fighters received $50,000 bonus awards: MacDonald and Olivier Aubin-Mercier (in a submission win over Jake Lindsey) were given the performance of the night, while Kelades and Holohan were given the fight-of-the-night honours … Hours before the card in Halifax, another UFC Fight Night card took place at the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden. In the main event, veteran Rick Story battled to a split decision over highly-touted Gunnar Nelson. Judges scored the match in 50-44 and 49-46 for Story, and 48-47 for Nelson … UFC Fight Night in Halifax was the company’s 10th event in the last eight weeks. Cards over that time were held in Sweden, Japan, Macau (China), Brazil, Nova Scotia, Maine, Oklahoma, California, Connecticut and Las Vegas. UFC 179, featuring a featherweight title rematch between champion Jose Aldo and No. 1 contender Chad Mendes, takes place Oct. 25 in Brazil.

STOCKHOLM, Sweden — While he entered the matchup as a sizable underdog, Rick (The Horror) Story turned in one of the most impressive performances of his career in a split-decision win over Gunnar (Gunni) Nelson on Saturday in the main event of a UFC Fight Night card.

Story (18-8) bested Nelson (13-1-1) over the course of five rounds at the Ericsson Globe Arena, handing his opponent the first pro loss of his career.

Story used constant pressure and a devastating left hand to press the pace from start to finish. Nelson stood firm in the pocket and returned fire, but he landed only single blows while Story was moving forward with combinations.

Nelson’s blows did draw a small stream of blood over Story’s right eye, but the cut never became an issue.

Corassani was the aggressor at the start, darting in and out of range with crisp strikes that frustrated his opponent. But Holloway kept busy on his feet by searching for opportunities and the work paid off with a straight right hand that sent Corassani toppling to the floor.

Holloway swarmed with additional punches, hunting for the finish. A gritty Corassani crawled back to his feet and tried to slow things down in the clinch, but Holloway broke away and continued his barrage of strikes for the victory.

“I’m feeling blessed right now,” Holloway said after the win. “I just can’t wait for the next one. The fight went faster than I thought it would, but I’m not going to complain.”

Polish light-heavyweight Jan Blachowicz (18-3) made an immediate impact in his UFC debut, downing Ilir Latifi (10-4) in less than two minutes.

Blachowicz was measured in his attack, opening the fight by firing off kicks to the legs and body. As he gained confidence, the strikes gained steam and he connected with a crushing kick to the body that sent Latifi reeling.

Blachowicz followed with a grazing head kick that sent Latifi to the floor. As he covered on the canvas, Blachowicz unleashed a flurry of punches that forced referee Grant Waterman to call off the fight at 1:58 of the first round.

“I feel great,” Blachowicz said after the win. “This is a dream come true.

“I want to show fans all over the world the legendary Polish power. I did it, and this is just the beginning.”

In the opening fight on the main card, English featherweight Mike Wilkinson (9-1) scored a massive upset over highly touted Swedish prospect Nicklas Backstrom (8-1).

Backstrom looked the better fighter early, and he scored with a high kick and a pair of knees that seemed to wobble his opponent. But as he moved forward for the finish, Wilkinson drilled him with a right hand and Backstrom crashed to the floor.

Wilkinson jumped on top and continued to punch away until referee Bobby Rehman called a halt to the fight at 1:19 of the opening round.

Mike Wilkinson, left, of England gets a kick to the head from Niclas Backstrom of Sweden. (AP Photo / TT, Anders Wiklund)

“He said he was being matched up to win. He disrespected me,” Wilkinson said after the fight. “There was no reason to disrespect me. There was no way I was stopping until I knew I had him and the ref stopped it.”

The card was one of two UFC events on the day, coming before a televised event in Halifax. Welterweight Rory (Ares) MacDonald, a native of Kelowna, B.C., fighting out of Montreal, was scheduled to meet American-based Belgian Tarec (Sponge) Saffiedine in the main event.

HALIFAX — Mitch Gagnon may want to check his opponent’s ID when he steps into the cage Saturday night on a televised UFC card.

The 29-year-old bantamweight from Sudbury, Ont., is on his third opponent, with Roman (El Gallito) Salazar stepping in this week for Rob Font, who had replaced Aljamain Sterling.

“It’s part of the fight game,” Gagnon said philosophically of the injury-related revolving door.

Salazar (9-2) is a 26-year-old Tucson cable technician making his UFC debut.

Gagnon (11-2) only found about his new opponent Monday but doesn’t seem fazed. He says he’s not big on game-plans.

“I’m just going to do me,” he said. “I’m positive I’ll be come coming out victorious on Saturday.”

Mitch Gagnon, of Canada, in a file photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Gagnon, a prickly pocket rocket, has flown under the radar despite winning nine of his last 10 fights. He has won three straight since losing his UFC debut to Bryan Caraway via third-round submission at UFC 149 — a defeat that nevertheless earned him a US$65,000 bonus for fight of the night.

The five-foot-five 135-pounder subsequently scored first-round submissions of Walel Watson and Dustin Kimura before winning a decision over Tim Gorman.

Gagnon’s guillotine choke win over Kimura at UFC 165 in Toronto earned him a $50,000 bonus for submission of the night.

That fight showed Gagnon’s heart. He was hurt by a Kimura body shot but promptly took his opponent down. After escaping a heel hook, he hurt Kimura from top position.

The fight ended when Kimura passed out from a guillotine choke after Gagnon stuffed a takedown attempt.

He gave up six inches in height to Watson but floored him with a left and then locked in a rear-naked choke for a 69-second win at UFC 152.

Ten of Gagnon’s 11 wins have come by submission, with six via guillotine choke. His cauliflower ears attest to an extensive grappling background.

“You don’t get that ear playing tennis,” UFC commentator Joe Rogan said dryly prior to the Kimura fight.

It was an impressive comeback for Gagnon, who sat out a year after the Watson fight due to knee surgery.

While focused on Salazar, Gagnon would like another shot at Caraway down the line.

“No excuses, he was the better man that day,” Gagnon said. “I just feel like I’ve gotten better and he stayed the same.”

Gagnon, a former wrestler who took up MMA training some seven years ago, spent two months training for this fight in the Toronto area, with the occasional visit of his fiancee from Sudbury.

He walks around at about 155 pounds, hitting 165 “if I let myself go a little bit.” As of Wednesday he was 147 pounds, still eating big meals and drinking water.

“I’m doing everything right as far as the weight cut goes,” he said. “I’m doing it as healthy as I can.”

HALIFAX — Back at UFC 160, T.J. Grant showed his championship mixed martial arts credentials by earning a lightweight title shot with an impressive knockout of Gray (The Bully) Maynard.

Entering the MGM Grand Garden Arena to Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again” — his usual soundtrack, chosen after seeing boxer Mickey Ward walk out to it in 2002 — the lightweight from Cole Harbour, N.S., knocked out Maynard in the first round to earn a 155-pound title shot.

The first minute of the fight belonged to Maynard, who landed some hard shots. But the rest belonged to Grant, who put Maynard down with a right to the jaw and then swarmed him at the fence. The Canadian fired knees and punches until the referee stepped in to save a dazed Maynard two minutes seven seconds into the fight.

“Huge, huge victory for T.J. Grant,” said UFC commentator Joe Rogan. “What an impressive knockout, in the most important fight of his career.”

The win, his fifth straight since dropping down to lightweight, earned Grant a US$50,000 bonus for knockout of the night and a shot at then-world champion Benson (Smooth) Henderson.

“Nothing but respect. But hey, I want to fight the champ, I want to be the champ,” Grant said in the cage that night. “Let’s do it.”

Today, the euphoria of May 25, 2013, seems a distant memory.

Saturday’s televised show in Grant’s backyard represents the 56th UFC card since he battered Maynard. And the Canadian contender has not been a part of any of them.

Two weeks after the Maynard win, Grant was hit in the head by his training partner’s foot during a jiu-jitsu session. Later in the session, he used his head to stop a sweep and was hit again.

“I don’t know which one it was,” he said of the head blows. “All I know is just when I was done training, I didn’t feel right.”

Diagnosed with a concussion, the 30-year-old has not sparred since.

TJ Grant, left, of Canada, fights Evan Dunham in this file photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

A proud, private man, Grant (21-5) is reluctant to do much media these days. He wants to focus on getting well, rather than rehash his medical problems.

It has been one step forward, one step back. A frustrating, bumpy road back. And while acknowledging he was “on the cusp of being able to secure my future,” he is not complaining.

“I’m making improvements, basically,” Grant said in an interview this week. “It’s a slow process. Nothing really new to report. Getting some good direction, trying to do my best.”

There is no quick fix for a concussion. Every one is different. And unlike a broken leg or surgically repaired knee, there is no set return date.

At a news conference in August to promote the Halifax card, Grant seemed more optimistic.

“I’m near the end of it, and I’m looking forward to resuming my career soon,” he told reporters. “I hope to be ready to fight this fall.”

Summer is over and Grant’s plans have changed.

“For me, it’s just really up and down, hit or miss,” he said. “I’ll say one thing one day and I’ll feel good and the next day I won’t. I’ve decided to just kind of take a little step back, put my career on hold and just do what I’ve got to do to get better.”

Grant looks good, lean and in shape. He works out but doesn’t spar. But some days, going to the gym turns out to be a bad idea.

“You don’t really want to go roll around with people when you have a headache.”

It’s doubly painful because training is what he loves to do.

And there seems no rhyme or reason to it. “Sometimes you don’t know what you did,” he said of setbacks.

He follows his sport closely, watching every show he can. And he is grateful for the support he gets daily, often from people he doesn’t know.

But he doesn’t want to be a sad-story poster boy, one of the reasons he has limited interviews.

By all rights, his story should be that of a blue-collar athlete who turned himself into a hard-nosed, prickly opponent with multiple weapons, a fighter who dropped down a weight class and became a dangerous contender.

There are no airs to Grant, who knows the value of honesty and hard work. But sadly character doesn’t factor into concussion comebacks.

Grant has had plenty of help in recent months, from medical experts to other athletes. Fellow Cole Harbour native Sidney Crosby reached out to share his concussion experiences.

“It really meant a lot,” said Grant.

He tries to apply discipline to his recovery, for example watching what he eats — which he admits wasn’t easy at the beginning when he couldn’t train.

The fighter remains optimistic and has no plans to retire. But he knows he has to put his chosen profession on the side. For how long, he doesn’t know.

“I’m know I’m going to get back to 100 per cent. I just don’t know exactly when that’s going to be.”

The Halifax show represents another missed opportunity for Grant, the flag-bearer for MMA in the region.

Anthony (Showtime) Pettis replaced him at UFC 163 in August 2013 and dethroned Henderson. Grant, still not feeling right, then had to withdraw from a scheduled December 2013 title fight with Pettis.

On the plus side, Grant has the support of a sizable family. He grew up with four older brothers. His mother was one of nine kids and his father one of 14. At a recent family reunion, he discovered he had 50 first cousins.

“She’s awesome,” Grant said of the little one. “She’s tons of fun. Every day is like a new journey. She’s doing something different. It keeps you on your toes.”

Kids, Grant has learned, are quick learners.

“They just watch you and they see what you’re doing. The next thing you know they’re imitating,” he said.

“You’ve got to make sure you’re holding yourself to the highest standards, so you’re not teaching them any bad habits,” he said with a laugh.

Unfortunately for Grant, he also stands as a reminder of concussion — a confusing, debilitating injury that is no stranger to combat sports.

Athletic commissions routinely hand out medical suspensions to the victim of a knockout. But in a sport where you have to compete to get paid, the pressure to return to action quickly is intense.

Grant was fortunate in winning three UFC bonus cheques worth $180,000, which no doubt have helped matters although a hefty chunk of that goes to the taxman. He bought a Nissan Maxima with his first bonus cheque, for knocking out Kevin Burns at UFC 107.

Speaking last year, UFC president Dana White said concussions are monitored closely. Often fighters have to be cleared by a doctor before they can step back into the cage after a bad loss.

“If you are on a three month suspension because you were hit in the head or whatever your deal is in a fight and you go back into the gym and start sparring again, first of all you’re a moron. No 2, the people who handle you probably don’t care about you.”

Grant knows he is not alone.

“I’m not going to say it doesn’t happen in this sport because you see it happen on every fight card,” said Grant. “Like I said, everybody’s different … some people don’t get symptoms. I’m just trying to deal with what I’ve got right now.”

]]>http://o.canada.com/sports/ufc-lightweight-contender-t-j-grant-continues-long-slow-concussion-comeback/feed0IMG_2920thecanadianpressTJ Grant, left, of Canada, fights Evan Dunham in this file photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan DenetteGeorges St-Pierre nearing return to training, but UFC future still unclearhttp://o.canada.com/sports/georges-st-pierre-nearing-return-to-training-but-ufc-future-still-unclear
http://o.canada.com/sports/georges-st-pierre-nearing-return-to-training-but-ufc-future-still-unclear#commentsFri, 03 Oct 2014 15:26:37 +0000http://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com/?p=523504]]>HALIFAX — Georges St-Pierre is on the verge of returning to mixed martial arts training. But whether he fights again is still up in the air.

Longtime coach Firas Zahabi believes the former UFC welterweight champion is not short of motivation as he continues his comeback from knee surgery during his hiatus from the sport.

Zahabi, in Halifax to corner five fighters including No. 2 welterweight Rory MacDonald on Saturday’s televised UFC card, says GSP is scheduled to take his training up a notch.

“He’s been cleared now to do some martial arts training,” Zahabi said this week. “We’re going to take it one step at a time. We’re going to get back in the gym, try to have some fun. You know he hasn’t kicked and punched in a long time so we’re going to have some fun with it first.”

Georges St. Pierre has denied recent reports that he has made a decision to return to action. Dario Ayala/Postmedia News

St-Pierre (25-2) vacated his title last December saying he needed time away from the sport. But he kept training.

He underwent surgery in April after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament during a workout. GSP had reconstructive surgery on his other knee in December 2011.

The 33-year-old St-Pierre has denied recent reports that he has made a decision to return to action.

Zahabi says he can’t speak for the former champion.

“But I believe there’s still a lot of fire in him,” said Zahabi. “I just think he needs to balance his life a lot more. When you run, you trip.

“He did too many fights too soon, too much. I think he’s just got to space them out. He can handle that. He just needs to have some personal life as well.”

After a controversial razor-thin split decision over Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks at UFC 167 last November, the battered champion seemed a man on the edge.

“I can’t sleep at night now. I’m going crazy,” he said in the post-fight news conference. “I have issues. I need to relax. I need to get out for a while. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

He announced his hiatus weeks later, without going into detail on the issues bothering him.

Georges St. Pierre, left, won a razor-thin split decision against Johny Hendricks at UFC 167 last November and weeks later announced his hiatus. (AP Photo/Isaac Brekken, File)

Hendricks went on to claim the vacant 170-pound title, beating (Ruthless) Robbie Lawler. The two are scheduled to fight again Dec. 6 at UFC 181.

Like Zahabi, UFC Canada boss Tom Wright also has his own opinion on St-Pierre.

“I don’t have any facts whatsoever. My hunch is that Georges will come back,” said Wright, who also heads up UFC operations in Australia and New Zealand. “But Georges will want to come back on his own terms

“I’d like to see nothing better.”

Since stepping aside, St-Pierre has talked of the need for more stringent drug testing in his sport.

Wright points to the two different camps on GSP’s fighting future. One wants St-Pierre to retire at the top of his game. The other says he has unfinished business and perhaps wants to go out on different terms.

“Who knows,” said Wright.

UFC president Dana White has said that St-Pierre could return to a title fight.

Georges St-Pierre spent time teaching fighting techniques to a group of prize winners during a ‘Get in the Cage’ event at Tristar Gym in Montreal in February. (Dario Ayala / Postmedia News)

St-Pierre has already cemented his legacy in the sport. The win over Hendricks was a record 19th in the UFC for St-Pierre, one more than former welterweight champion Matt Hughes. It also moved GSP past former middleweight champion Anderson Silva for most wins in UFC title bouts at 12.

St-Pierre holds the record for career fight time in the UFC at five hours 28 minutes 12 seconds.

He also owns the UFC mark for most championship rounds fought (52). UFC 167 was St-Pierre’s 14th championship fight, one behind Randy Couture.

St-Pierre exited leading the UFC records in total strikes landed, significant strikes landed, takedowns landed and takedown accuracy rate, according to FightMetric.

]]>http://o.canada.com/sports/georges-st-pierre-nearing-return-to-training-but-ufc-future-still-unclear/feed0DEA14 0228 GSP 9419thecanadianpressDEA14 0228 GSP 9411FILE - In this Nov. 16, 2013 file photo, Johny Hendricks, right, exchanges punches with Georges St. Pierre during a UFC 167 mixed martial arts championship welterweight bout in Las Vegas. Hendricks has waited several years to be the world's top welterweight, and he finally has his chance at UFC 171 in Dallas. (AP Photo/Isaac Brekken, File) ORG XMIT: NY163DEA14 0228 GSP 9354UFC eyes Saskatchewan stop on 2015 calendar, with Atlantic Canada also on radarhttp://o.canada.com/sports/ufc-eyes-saskatchewan-stop-on-2015-calendar-with-atlantic-canada-also-on-radar
http://o.canada.com/sports/ufc-eyes-saskatchewan-stop-on-2015-calendar-with-atlantic-canada-also-on-radar#commentsThu, 02 Oct 2014 22:47:31 +0000http://postmediacanadadotcom.wordpress.com/?p=523229]]>HALIFAX — After a year that saw Canada host three UFC shows instead of a planned five, the UFC is still planning its 2015 schedule.

But UFC Canada boss Tom Wright sees two to three annual pay-per-view shows in future, augmented by several smaller Fight Night televised cards.

In 2014, Canada was slated to hold pay-per-view shows in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver (UFC 174 on June 14) with Fight Night shows in Quebec City (April 16) and Halifax (Saturday). UFC 178, slated for Toronto in September, was shifted to Las Vegas while the December Montreal show was scrapped.

The UFC is a month away from finalizing its complete 2015 schedule yet but there are some Canadian clues.

UFC Canada head Tom Wright is interested in bringing future televised shows to St. John’s, Moncton, Hamilton, Ottawa, London and Windsor. (Postmedia News)

The UFC has a March date reserved at the Bell Centre so Montreal should get its card. And Toronto, having lost its 2014 show, is also expected to host a 2015 show with several dates reserved at the Air Canada Centre.

The first foray into Atlantic Canada has been a home run, with between 10,000 and 11,000 fans expected at the soldout Scotiabank Centre. The gate is expected to exceed $1 million.

“This is a good example of why we’re excited about our sport across the country,” Wright said Thursday. “Because you come to a town like Halifax and there’s a real buzz in the city, which is great.”

Canada is a good fit for the smaller Fight Night televised cards and Wright hopes to bring one to Saskatchewan, either Regina or Saskatoon, next year.

“I think it will do as well as we’ve done here,” Wright said.

Wright is also interested in bringing future televised shows to St. John’s, Moncton, Hamilton, Ottawa, London and Windsor, among others.

He also says he will lobby to bring a pay-per-view to Edmonton once the new area is built. And Quebec City wants the UFC to come back, this time to its new arena.

The 12-fight Halifax card features nine Canadian fighters, as well as athletes from 10 different birth countries: Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Cuba, France, Ireland, Nigeria, Russia and the U.S.

“That’s pretty cool,” said Wright, who also oversees UFC operations in Australia and New Zealand.

Halifax is the seventh Canadian city to host a UFC show, joining Calgary, Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto, Winnipeg and Vancouver. Saturday will mark the UFC’s 17th Canadian show since 2008.

Johnson easily scored a takedown in the first round and stunned Cariaso with a looping right hook, followed by a knee to the jaw as the horn sounded to end the round.

Johnson kept the pressure on in the second and gained top control after Cariaso’s slip. Johnson swiftly manoeuvred into side control, landed a few elbows and secured a Kimura, forcing Cariaso to tap out at 2:29 of the second.

“I felt good. It was a great fight,” Johnson said. “I’m just trying to get better at my ground game.”

Johnson improved to 21-2-1 with his fifth straight title defence. Cariaso dropped to 17-6.

In the co-main event, lightweight Donald Cerrone moved closer to a title shot with a unanimous decision over Eddie Alvarez. Cerrone used powerful leg kicks to wear down Alvarez, winning 29-28 on all three scorecards.

“There’s no quit in this dog,” Cerrone said. “If you’re going to beat me, you better do it in the first.”

In a battle of rising featherweights, Conor McGregor made short work of Dustin Poirier, earning a TKO victory in the first round. McGregor improved to 16-2, and Poirier fell to 16-4.

“I don’t just knock them out, I pick the round,” McGregor said. “When featherweights get hit by me it’s a whole new ballgame.”

Yoel Romero survived a back and forth brawl to beat Tim Kennedy by TKO, and No. 1 women’s bantamweight contender Cat Zingano moved into position for a title shot with a third-round TKO over Amanda Nunes.